


The Possibility of Redemption and other Terrifying Concepts

by Critique_Masochist



Category: Hazbin Hotel (Web Series)
Genre: Angst, Asexual Character, Asexual Relationship, Both of these are covered briefly, Constructive Criticism Welcome, Cute gay shit, Demons, Does the font work idk, Enemies to Friends, Enemies to Friends to Lovers, Explicit Language, F/F, Fluff, Implied Sexual Content, Lots of implied sexual content from our pink boi, Love Confessions, M/M, Other, Panic Attacks, Redemption, Self-Harm, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-10-28
Updated: 2020-08-19
Packaged: 2021-01-05 23:36:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 29
Words: 43,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21216920
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Critique_Masochist/pseuds/Critique_Masochist
Summary: An Alastor centred continuation of the Pilot. Three weeks after the Happy Hotel's grand opening, the unexpected happens and Alastor has to face the uncanny reality of redemption being possible.Hijinks with angst, fluff and humour and some Radiodust shipping, just for you! <3





	1. A Heartfelt Welcome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a quick heads up; there will be some non-important, usually unnamed oc side characters in this story! Do not be alarmed, these are used to move the plot along and create realism, because otherwise Hazbin Hotel would feel entirely empty.  
I aim for light-hearted fun along with minor angst here and I think its best for me to be upfront about these kinds of things. Nothing against OC’s, they are just not a big part of this story.
> 
> Anyway, if you are new to the Hazbin Hotel fandom; WELCOME!  
If you have been in this fandom for a while; Yo! I’m writing this because there isn’t enough Hazbin fanfiction. We need more.
> 
> Anyway, Enjoy! XD

“No need to worry about money or any of that!” Charlie said and smiled so brightly that the wide eyed demon she was dragging along almost didn’t mind being dragged along.

Ryan, also known as Y/N had been able to gather that this was, in fact, Charlotte Magne kidnapping him, the daughter of Lucifer himself and the princess of HELL.

She had been so happy and bubbly that Ryan had shown any kind of interest in her uniform that she had invited the stranger into her ‘hotel’. Ryan hadn’t been able to refuse her and was now mentally preparing for the trauma that would surely ensue from following the daughter of the devil to wherever they were heading.

“A very _generous sponsor_ is covering all of our costs so it’s all perfectly fine.” Charlie explained. “He’s harmless and actually a really nice person once you just start to take him literally! Honestly, everyone at the hotel is incredibly nice! It’s like being part of an actually functional family!”

She paused, reflecting briefly. “Well, ‘functional’ in the sense that they all try to support you in their own weird ways, you know? And on top of that, all of our staff and clientele are being rehabilitated!” she paused to gather herself. “They are all people who are aware of their flaws and are trying to improve as people… In HELL!” she giggled. “Cool, right?” Ryan nodded reluctantly. The way this small gesture made Charlie smile wasn’t something he would be able to forget for quite a while.

She was almost skipping now and the nervous demon finally gave in and smiled to himself.

“Now…” Charlie said, stopping in front of a rather GIGANTIC building. She let Ryan take a few steps back in order to relish in the sight of the enormously tall building. “It looks kind of imposing but, really, that was just me getting ahead of myself and picking the biggest building I could find!” she said, letting out an awkward laugh. 

“_No kidding.”_

“Welcome.” The doors opened. “to Hazbin Hotel!”

Colourful eyes focused on the two of them as the doors opened to reveal a magenta coloured lobby, full of demons of all shapes and sizes seated very comfortably on overly luxurious looking, torn up furniture.

Ryan headed inside cautiously, much to Charlie’s delight.

Royal purple and magenta were fused beautifully with the gold lighting, giving the inside a warm and homey appearance. The chill group of demons, hanging out by the entrance, didn’t stop talking when the hotel's owner passed them by. They didn’t seem threatened by her in any way. Neither did Charlie herself care much about their chitchat on knife throwing and past murders. She seemed pleased, more than anything…

Ryan decided that maybe this was a very bizarrely themed mafia gang.

“So here we have a bar and I knoooow it’s counterproductive,” Charlie said with puppy-dog eyes. “but our sponsor kind of just decided to put it there and there really isn’t all that much I can do about that, I’m afraid.”

“I don’t, uh, I don’t drink.” Ryan said.

“Oh?? GREAT! Wowee, that’s such a relief!” she looked over at the cat demon, cleaning the bar. “Because, seriously, even if I could convince our sponsor, I have a feeling that Husk over here will just stay in that corner and _drink endlessly_.”

“Um, who exactly IS this sponsor you keep ta-“

“Three weeks in, ladies and gentlemen, and not a SINGLE. REDEMPTION. IN. SIGHT!” the **_RAD̳̺̗͎͎̳̕I̬̤̰Ơ̤̙ ͙̮͍̠̦̱͢D̤̠̲Ḛ͜M̜͓̤̗͠O̶̜̲͍N͏̜̦̹͇_** cheerily announced into his recording-walking stick. “We have been filling these rooms like tuna canners have been filling live tunas with cans- yet not a single one of those fish has yet to miraculously ascend!”

Charlie looked over and found Ryan to have already left the building. She facepalmed and mumbled a few unearthly curses under her breath. How was she supposed to attract new clients when there was an OVERLORD in her lobby?!

Alastor wasn’t exactly the most terrifying, as Overlords went, but his reputation made up for that. Generally speaking, people didn’t want to go anywhere near _him_.

“But don’t take my word for it!” the demon said, sliding next to Charlie. “With me here is the Princess of Hell, heir to Lucifer’s throne, the offspring who was waaay off; Charlotte Magne! Also known as Charlie.”

“Well, it’s always good to see that you’re enjoying yourself, Alastor.” The princess sighed. It wasn’t entirely unpleasant to have a wonderfully energetic, joyful spirit around, even if he was occasionally terrifying. “But the lobby is a tad crowded, I’m sure your recordings would sound clearer if-“

“Oh, nonsense! Now tell me, are you as excited about the patrons as I am?”

“Oh, am I?” Charlie beamed, rubbing at her cheeks gleefully. “We couldn’t be luckier to have so many knife-wielding, sex-addicted lunatics running around! The possibilities and joys of rehabilitation are endless, and I think we are really starting to build a supportive community here.”

“Aren’t you worried about the fact that nobody has really changed their ways yet?”

“Oh, no, you can’t just rush redemption. I believe with hard work and effort we’ll make it in due time.”

“I admire your outlook, princess! Even though, as all sane people know, redemption is impossible, it’s still very _amusing_ seeing people come and go in an _endless cycle_.” Charlie smiled wholeheartedly and Alastor almost laughed at that. “Now! What was that about a ‘supportive community’?”

Charlie admired Alastor’s polite bluntness in a way. He had made his sadistic goals very clear from the very beginning and Charlie was quietly aware that he wouldn’t even consider redemption as an option until he saw results… and yet. Yet, Alastor’s comments were nowhere near as degrading as the entirety of Hell laughing at her attempts at changing the world.

Actually, probably nothing would ever be that awful.

Ever.

And after a long day of feeling like nothing had actually changed, seeing Alastor being so thoroughly entertained offered at least some positivity, if nothing else.

It gave Charlie hope that she was leaving a positive impact on people. 

“_Did somebody say support?_” A pink spider demon sauntered towards the two. His appearance alone gathered most of the demons attention in an entirely different way to Alastor. They recognized him, sure, but not as a threat but rather as the sex idol and local celebrity, Angel Dust!

Angel stretched before placing two hands on his hips and two on the radio demons walking stick, leaning into it like he belonged there.

Alastor made a show of rolling his eyes.

Charlie looked at him like a drug addict looked at flour. The spider demon grinned, exchanging knowing glances with her. This wasn’t the first time he would save her and it certainly wouldn’t be the last. Charlie mouthed a thank you and quickly rushed to the entrance.

Alastor attempted to follow but quickly found himself shackled to the spot by his own walking stick, as it was currently being used as an armrest. Watching Charlie run off to chase down the demon who had just been scared away, he felt a pleasant rush of hatred flow through him. He turned his attention to the source of the feeling.

“So, Mister Radio Demon…” Angel purred. “Surely you have some questions for me as well.”

Alastor smiled a toothy smile that reminded Angel of a hungry wolf.

“Well, of course! Meet Angel Dust, dear listeners! A walking petri-dish of sexually transmitted diseases, Also known as Hazbin Hotel’s very own _Parasite, _he has been staying at this Hotel since the very beginning! looking upon him now, I can’t see a single OUNCE of progress!”

“Aw, _flatterer_.” Angel grinned.

“Tell us, Angel, how do you do it? How do you keep coming back and how could we make you _NOT_?” 

“Let it be known,” the spider demon said, whispering seductively into the microphone. “that humiliation is **not **my kink.”

And with that, Angel swiped the walking stick away from Alastor’s grasp and ran off with it, making soft moaning sounds right into Alastor’s microphone.

“_Angel!!_ “ Alastor jumped.

“Oh, Alastor! Whatever are you doing to me? Ohhhh ~!”

**_“͙͒ͬ̆ͧ͐̐ͧT̷̗̱͆̉͛̉̊ͥh̙͖̗͍͔̘̊̀̂̕is ̝̤̜̩͍̯̦͐ͤis̞̗͇̭̙̮̦̒͋̆ ̶̗̥̰̩̖͈̪̀ͩͣỷ͇̫ͬ̌͌̇ͫ͒o͎̰͕͉ͅu̸̫̲̙̗ͤr͑ͭ ̛̮̙̮̪̙͂̂ͦ͑ͬͤ̚f͇͔͖͈̳̅̋̿ͧ̿i̫͕̜̳͇͗̽̇ͣ͝n̈̎̇͐ǎ̖̹̬͓̆̏̐̚l̢̯̱̫̍̊ͥ͛̔ ̯̰͉͖̝̐ͮw̛̾̂ͭa̒̒̊͒̅r̈͑̿͏̯̖̩̣̰̣͓n͖̲͙̐͒̆͂ͅi̮͉͈̖̖ͦ̓ͦ̓ng̝̈̉ ̱̳ͅͅA̠̬͖̙̱̪̥ͨn͊ͬ̄g̟̦̈͛ẹl͚̥̀͘.͈͖ͫ͗̅̅̄͋̐”ͤ_** the Radio Demon said, speed walking out of the lobby, just in time for Charlie to lead the newbie back inside.

Charlie smiled widely, ignoring the distant chatter completely. “You’re going to love it here!”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A HUGE shoutout to my Beta-Reader Lavinioskij on Fiverr, if you liked this chapter it's all thanks to her <3  
Any and all comments are greatly appreciated! Do you have an idea on how my writing could improve? Any Lore that I missed? Do you have suggestions to make or mistakes you spotted?  
Comment down below!
> 
> I really appreciate you all! Thank you so much or reading and making this fic as big as it is <3


	2. Friendly Competition

Authors Notes:

*Taps microphone*

“Is this font working?”

Ok, but seriously, please do tell me if you find it obnoxious or if the font doesn’t show up on your browser. XD I apologize in advance

* * *

Angel’s sprint down the corridor was clumsy but tactical. He jumped and skipped like an antelope _on drugs_, dodging Alastor’s shadows with the skill of somebody who had done this before.

Alastor melted into the ground easily, giving chase in a much quicker fashion. He was faster than Angel Dust, sure, but every time he swiped at the demon Angel dodged him like it was the most natural thing in the world.

He knew he was predictable, it wasn’t like that was usually a problem for him. Annoyances in his life were taken care of in a swift fashion, usually.

Angel was the exception to the rule.

Angel was the exception to most of Alastor’s rules…

He _normally _hated chasing down people but… the way his claws graced Angel’s waist sent shivers down his spine. Angel was a daredevil for sure, giggling maniacally as he ran. His laughter echoed in Alastor’s head long after their encounters…

Angel was stupid, obviously.

Only a _complete moron_ would tease an Overlord but Alastor admired that mindless confidence. Nobody else ever bothered him…

Angel tossed over a cabinet and Alastor was momentarily staggered as it landed on his shadow form, drawing a muffled ‘Oof’ from him. Angel Dust used the opportunity to quickly slid into one of the unused dark corners of the hotel, carefully crawling through a crack in the wall into an empty, dark room.

It seemed impossible but Angel felt for a moment like he had actually lost Alastor. Which seemed impossible mostly because of the fact that the radio demon had a nasty habit of lurking in the darkness.

“I’ll have that back, thank you!” Alastor said, making Angel jump and drop the cane right into Alastor’s claws. The red of the Radio Demons eyes were all Angel could see. He was pressed against the wall, close enough to feel each other’s heartbeat and Angel tensed under his grip, his eyes wide.

Alastor looked into those mismatched eyes, finding fear where there had been absolutely none before.

“Oh, come now.” The radio host said, giving the other a bit of space, if only so that he could push the corner of Angels mouth upwards. “It’s no fun if you don’t smile!”

Angel relaxed, shaking his head softly.

“Must have taken you too seriously.”

“Must have pushed you too far.” Alastor teased which got a playful glare out of Angel.

“Push me _harder_.” He purred.

Alastor rolled his eyes, backing off.

Angel watched curiously as he turned the microphone off, it’s light blinked before fading. “This is usually the part of the show where I kill people!” Alastor explained.

“But you won’t.” Angel said.

“Oh, I simply couldn’t, darling! What would Charlie say?”

Angel grinned, seeing right through the others bluff. They both knew Alastor could do whatever the fuck he wanted; he just chose not to.

“Probably something along the lines of,” and then Angel very dramatically screamed and draped himself on the floor. “_Oh, the horror!” _he imitated. “_What will we do without our local prostitute?? Who will spread the gossip if not our kinky spider! What a loss, so sad!_”

Alastor snickered, which made it worth it in Angels eyes. “Vaggie would actually kill me.”

“Oh, dude, she HATES YOU!”

“By Lucifer, she does!” Alastor shook his head. “She’s a paranoid little thing, isn’t she?”

“Can’t blame her… we’re in Hell.”

“So we are.” Alastor tilted his head curiously.

The two of them hadn’t ever really talked before. Well, they had, sure, but it was never anything beyond small talk and endless insults.

“Why do you want to be redeemed, Angel? You don’t strike me as the type to want to go to heaven.”

“Oh, jeez, I get that question a lot, especially from Val…” Angel shook his head. “I mean, it’s true, I’m no real angel! I belong in Hell. I enjoy doing all the adult things that adults do…” he said, snuggling closer to Alastor.

Alastor responded by very smugly placing the sole of his shoe in Angels face and pushing him away. “No need to demonstrate.”

Angel laughed. “I do enjoy them but we’re in_ Hell_, love! Even you must agree that it isn’t exactly fun seeing gore and drugs and sex day after day after day… No matter how much we pretend it isn’t, it still gets exhausting, stupid… _boring_.”

Alastor eyes the spider at his feet with great curiosity. There was more to it than that, _he could tell._

“That’s why you’re here too, right?”

“I suppose so…”

Angel winked at him. “Everyone is always out to get one another. _Nobody wants commitment_.”

Alastor laughed, his voice buzzing in Angel’s ears. “Who would want commitment with _you_?”

“I’ll let you know that I have MANY positive qualities!” Angel bragged.

“Do you have any that _don’t_ involve your body?” Alastor teased.

“I can give great head!”

“WE ARE DONE HERE!” Alastor announced, crawling back out of the tiny space, only to be shoved out by a very playful Angel Dust, who immediately sat down on top of him.

“You’re one to talk!” Angel defended, resting a pair of his elbows on Alastor’s chest.

“I am! I’d like to think I’m quite good at it!” Alastor said, wresting the spider off. He managed to get on his feet but when Angel tried to follow, he pulled him up and into a twirl and then a tilt, looming over him with their face’s inches apart.

“You must be GREAT fun at parties.” Angel said, looking up at him.

“I don’t fuck my guests but I do host them.” Alastor replied.

There was a beat of silence between them.

“You _are_ fun.”

“So are you, even if you can’t dance for shit.”

“Are you going to drop me now or what?”

“What?” Alastor looked around. “Right now? Why would I do that?”

“Isn’t that how this song and dance usually goes?”

Alastor helped Angel back on his feet before brushing the dust off his suit.

“It Is.” he confessed. “But I suppose that would get boring.”

“What would you suggest?”

“Friendly competition.” Alastor suggested.

“I’ll bring a gun next time.” Angel said, finger gunning the other.

“I… was thinking chess or bowling or a drinking competition or something.”

Angel looked sheepish. “Er, my pawns will be locked and loaded!

“Right. I’ll be looking forward to it.”

“M-Me too!”

Alastor nodded once before leaving.

“Huh…” Angel said. “You’re different.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Gay shit coming soon.  
Feel free to comment me your thoughts until then XD  
Is the new font good? Terrible? DREADFUL? ATROCIOUS?? I don’t know. Tell me :3


	3. Redemption

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you reverie for your two cents, I was thinking of giving the first two chapters another draft anyway and I’m currently working on that. (Don’t worry you guys, you don’t have to read it all again, it’s just so that newcomers can enjoy a better-crafted version of the same story.)
> 
> I’ll also be looking into making the Alastor font visible on mobile devices because I want people to see my cool font, it’s like all I have going for me XD
> 
> Thank you all for commenting and reading, I really appreciate it <3

Husk heard the scream and rolled his eyes.

With this being Hazbin Hotel, Angel would be fine, whatever the context was. Not to mention that Husk had a few guesses what it was.

“You think they’re ok?” a blue snake demon asked, trying to look unbothered.

“Angel loves to yell.” Husk said, poring him another drink. “He feeds on the attention.”

“Crap childhood?”

“Don’t know all the details…” Husk shrugged. “But… I heard he grew up in a family of crime.”

“Didn’t he get enough attention, then?” the serpent asked.

“Oh, I bet he got plenty.”

Husk didn’t consider himself an expert in anything but he had talked to enough drunk people to know how things worked and he had talked to a drunk Angel enough times to know that he WANTED attention… but he needed-

“Speaking of the devil…”

Angel strode into the lobby unscathed and very smug looking. Husk could tell, from how easily he placed himself on the bar stools, that the screaming wasn’t caused by hardcore butt-sex.

“What did you do this time?” Husk asked, knowing exactly what he had done this time.

“Stole his cane and asked him to stick it in me.” Angel grinned, already eyeing his next victim. “The usual, you know?”

“I can’t tell if you’re a masochist or if you genuinely think you’ll get into his pants this way…“

“If you accepted any of my offers, you’d know the answer to that~” Angel teased.

Husk rolled his eyes. “Trust me on this one; You and Alastor? It’s not happening.”

Angel’s grin didn’t budge. Alastor being asexual was old news in his book. He really wished Husk would let him in on some juicier gossip from time to time. He had heard rumours about Alastor beating Husk in a round of poker and he needed the details so badly…

“I know.” Angel dismissed. “I’m just here for a drink, anyway.”

Husk shrugged, expertly hiding his relief. It wasn’t in his job description to care about the well being of his most regular clients but it was hard not to when there was nothing else to do, really.

He got to work preparing something fruity and sweet with whatever liquor he had already on the table.

Angel took the opportunity and scooted over from his seat into the curious snake demons lap, to fix his tie, of course. Obviously, the snake demon wearing a full body suit wasn’t a sight Angel could resist.

“My, my, and here I thought the drinks were the main attraction!” the snake hissed, alerting Husk.

“Hey, no stealing my customers before they pay!” Husk reminded.

“I’m not stealing anyone!” Angel said, pretending to be very embarrassed and surprised. His acting was, as usual, on par with porn standards. “I was merely bugging this serpent with some harmless innuendos.”

“Innuendo is a very light way of putting it.”

“It’s just so hard to keep myself away from well-mannered, attractive men.” Angel purred, his hands dancing up and down the serpent’s body, feeling the muscles. “Somebody to treat me right, you know?”

Husk hummed. “And Steven here, who was a fast food cashier, is all that?”

“Fast food? You’re a blessing to the world, how did you end up in Hell?” Angel asked, dumbfounded. Husk groaned.

“Keep looking. Steven isn’t _‘the one’_ and Alastor isn’t even close. You just have bad taste.”

“Oh, I’ll _keep looking_ alright.” And Angel snaked his way down to the serpent’s pant. Steven didn’t mind this at all. “Let’s get all of this off first.”

“PLEASE get a room first!” Husk groaned.

A few moments later, in room 645, Vaggie was in the process of kicking Angel Dust ‘the fuck out of this room’ with the aid of a broom. The latter attempting to collect as many of his clothing items as possible before leaving, not really in order to preserve some non-existent dignity, but rather to annoy Vaggie further.

This happened so often that some of the patrons had started referring to Vaggie as ‘the witch’. In Vaggie’s opinion, if this nonsense continued than the spider would eventually get fucking squashed. In Angel Dust’s opinion, if this nonsense continued brooms would have to be added to his long long list of kinks.

Alastor walked by the noisy door but decided by the sound of things that it was probably not worth broadcasting.

No, what Charlie was doing was always infinitely more entertaining. Very delicately, he bent his long body down just enough to peek through the keyhole of 646.

Room 646 was where Charlie had decided to shelter all the eggs that had survived Sir Pentious’s last encounter with an eldritch horror. They were all rather clingy bastards, in Alastor’s opinion. Not worth attention, which was however exactly what Charlie was giving them.

They were lovingly cuddled up in her arms and appeared to be having _a moment._

“Another round of sobbing happening right now LIVE in Hazbin hotel!” Alastor announced, as quietly as his ego allowed, into his microphone. “I couldn’t possibly put it into words how happy it makes me to see these sinners _suffer! _Isn’t that just the spirit of Hell anyway?_ Oh, dear listeners, they are confessing quite the embarrassing secrets, how terrible would it be if word got out-_

What in the world…”

A bright white light emanated from one of the eggs. At first, it was subtle, almost unnoticeable. But it grew and it GREW until it was all Alastor could see and despite his eyes searing with pain he couldn’t look away.

Charlie’s scream made him snap out of it and send him staggering back. The blinding light was seeping through the cracks in the door and the keyhole, so eye-catchingly beautiful that Alastor didn’t even notice the crowd gathering around him at first.

The whole hotel had gone silent, everyone having either left at the first sign of trouble or having gathered around the cryptic door with Alastor.

They were all too afraid to even go near it.

Alastor laughed.

He had heard stories. Silly, ridiculous stories of small children being engulfed in light and the soaring up to heaven. Hell, he had told similar stories after midnight, in order to disgust the old and disturb the young!

Bullshit.

“My lovely guests, it appears dear Charlie has decided to play some sort of prank on us! And here we thought she was supposed to be a good influence! Allow me to open this door and reveal the gal behind the curtains.”

The doorknob stung with some sort of holy energy but Alastor ignored it.

The door opened.

For a moment, it was all white. White from top to bottom with Alastor’s shadow being the only dark thing to keep everyone grounded. And then, before their very eyes, they witnessed the eggs, every single one of them, disappear, leaving only a single white feather behind.

For a very long moment…

There was silence.

And then Charlie screamed, howling in pain as the deep burns all around her arms, finally registered in her brain.

Holy injuries, Alastor noticed.

The patrons watched, some terrified, most confused, very few trying to actually be helpful. A very distraught Vaggie carried the princess away from the scene and most other demons decided to join her.

_Why?_

Alastor looked curiously as they all left. He watched, unable to quite form his thoughts into words.

There was a smell in the air that he knew all too well, except it was stronger now. Much stronger and he could not possibly fathom why.

Hope.

There was hope now, where had been none just a few seconds ago. Why? How Stupid! Nothing had changed. They were all still the irredeemable wicket creatures they had been all along.

Alastor stopped whatever train of thought he was entertaining and forced himself to face the new, single fact that had just presented itself to him.

Sinners… could be redeemed.

Alastor stopped recording.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Editing Crit here: Yep, I'm still updating this gigantic piece of a story. Suggestions and criticism is always appreciated. Thank you guys so much for reading :3
> 
> Editing Crit in the further future here: I have shortened the chapters, if you are going through the comment section, keep in mind that they may not make sense and/or contain some spoilers :3  
(sorry about that, just trying to make this giant thing more readable)


	4. Betrayal

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Shout out to SilverFliesInBlueSugar and randomplotbunny for always being the first people in my inbox for some reason. I really don’t deserve you guys <3

Admittedly, Vaggie had done this before. She had carried her girlfriend away from nonsense before, although usually it was done in an attempt to preserve Charlie’s innocence. Sometimes, when the family drama got too heated and the horns popped out of her skull and the table was flipped over, it was an all-around good idea to get her the fuck out of that situation before she killed someone.

But Charlie was crying now. And it was_ terrifying._

Vaggie’s thoughts circled around and round as she ran down the stairs of the tall establishment. Why. Why had they purchased a building with so many floors?? Why had Charlie gotten hurt? Why was Charlie crying?? CHARLIE DIDN’T CRY! Not in front of people. She would always leave the room or hide in a corner or…

It must be holy. A holy injury, she decided.Injuries on their own were already bad but holy damage was even worse, especially because Vaggie had absolutely no fucking idea how to deal with that kind of thing! What in the name of God’s taint had just happened??

She had been busy beating the crap out of the kinky spider for five minutes and apparently heaven had decided_ to personally Scorch her Girlfriend! _

Did the entire universe just hate them? It sometimes really felt like it.

The stairs were a blur under her feet. Cleaning the wound with alcohol would do no good if it was magic.

_“Curse those in heaven all the way to Hell, what NOW??” _Vaggie hissed.

What would do any good against heavenly injuries? Hellfire? No, surely that was stupid, surely that was the dumbest idea she’s ever had! That was just the kind of dreadful nonsense that a dead millennial would come up with; FUCK!

* * *

Husk yawned. The lobby was empty, which was pretty odd, but he had heard whispering as the last few people left, and he would no doubt get to hear all about it once folks came back for a drink.

It wasn’t bad to be alone.

More alcohol for him, for now.

Husk yawned once more and then barely-almost sobered up a bit when he saw a grey blur pass by him, almost knocking him out of his seat with the sheer amount of chaotic energy. He could barely brace himself before Vaggie yeeted her_ girlfriend into the fireplace._

“What… WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” he burst out, his wings flaring up as he semi-rushed to aid the princess.

Easier said than done.

Vaggie pointed a spear right at his face with that mad-way too red look in her eye. Well, that was just rude.

“I’m sorry, what do you think you’re doing?!” Husk hissed.

**“FUCK OFF!”**

“Jesus, fine!” he said, folding his unorderly wings back into place and backing away. “Excuse Me for _trying to help_.”

Vaggie lowered her spear and vaguely noticed Husk’s retreat. She fully noticed Charlie’s sobs dying out. With all of her willpower combined, she turned her gaze towards the fire. The first thing she saw was Charlie’s limp form and for a soul-crushing moment, Vaggie thought that she killed the love of her life. That her own stupidity and paranoia had led to- but it hadn’t.

She had been ludicrously lucky.

Charlie looked better.

Carefully, with minimal burns on her own demon hands, she pulled the daughter of the devil out of the hellish flames. She looked her over. The fire hadn’t even harmed a single strand of hair... But her arms. Oh, dear Lucifer…

They were burned beyond recognition. Swirls of white surrounded by charcoal, burnt flesh. Vaggie had never seen an injury quite like that, however, the smell of burnt meat was disgustingly familiar. The only reason she was able to keep herself together was the strange idea at the back of her mind that, despite the most horrible thing that she could ever have imagined just happening (aka Charlie getting seriously fucking hurt) this was still somehow a resounding success.

And for some time, she didn’t understand why.

Then it hit her.

“Charlie!” she said and the body stirred. “You actually did it!” 

* * *

Everything hurt, sure, but Charlie felt stronger than ever. Burnt, shaking fingers stroked Vaggie’s cheek as Vaggie’s eyes softened further.

“Inside of every demon is a rainbow.” Charlie whispered and_ Vaggie hiccuped and whimpered in a mix of emotions._

“_You’re stupid fucking bullshit songs actually worked; I can’t believe it_.”

“You do. Always did.” Charlie comforted. “I owe it all to you.”

“Shut up.” Vaggie said but Charlie could see that hearing her voice was calming Vaggie down. “_Are you going to get hurt like this Every Time??”_

“No.” she shook her head. “We’ll figure something out, now that we know it’s possible.”

“We will.” Vaggie said, wiping a few stray tears away and smiling that wonderful smile. Charlie couldn’t help but kiss her and it made Vaggie laugh. She buried her face in Charlie’s chest and took in a deep breath as the lobby started to fill with demons.

“Give them some room to breathe, perverts!” Angel dust said, circling the two girls and making sure nobody got any closer before very nonchalantly scanning Charlie for injuries. “Oof.”

“What just happened?” one of the demons asked, loudly enough to be heard despite all of the increasing whispering.

“Well, obviously the breakfast boys just got rehabilitated.” Angel huffed. “That’s what all the light was about, boys! There is no disco happening tonight; that’s on Sunday and also a secret!”

Laughter came from the audience. At first Charlie feared fate was repeating itself but then she realized that the crowd wasn’t laughing and certainly not at her. No, as the demons stirred and stepped aside a single enemy stepped out of the crowd.

The Radio Demon.

“Alastor!” Charlie smiled. “It’s just you… did you… did you see it?”

The whispering had stopped.

“Of course!” the way Alastor smiled was off, Charlie tightened her grip around Vaggie. “You put on quite a show, Charlie!” Alastor said. He clapped sarcastically and got as close to the two as Angel would allow.

There was a strange twitch to Alastor, something deeply unsettling showing on the surface. Alastor turned his back to Angel to speak to the crowd.

“You demons have been fooled, manipulated and taken advantage of _all of your lives” __ he raised a finger and pointed it at Charlie. “_and yet you can’t even see through this obvious deception!”

“What the fuck are you talking about??” Vaggie heckled.

“Honestly, what an idea! Pretending Redemption is a reality!

You would have gotten all of the funding and all of the love and support you crave so dearly, all for the small price of a very likely war breaking out over this. You would have caused so much suffering!”

Alastor laughed at that, his nonchalant ways visibly convincing some of the demons around him already. With a snap, he melted into the ground and appeared inches in front of Charlie’s eyes.

"I would be congratulating you right now, if it wasn’t for the fact that you tried to fool me as well!” his expression grew sad. “I can’t let people like you _do that_…”

**“Back OFF!”** Vaggie shrieked, lunging at Alastor with her spear, brutally stabbing his right eye. Alastor staggered backwards, nearly tripping on Angel as he clutched his face and tried to stand his ground. “You-you gave me no choice.” Vaggie hissed.

She was taken aback when Alastor started to laugh.

“What’s so funny?!” Vaggie yelled, holding out her spear.

Alastor combed back his hair with one hand before tossing his microphone to Angel, who caught it. Angel frowned, taking a few steps out of Vaggie’s spearing-range.

Vagie glared at the two of them and couldn’t help but gasp as the Radio Demon appeared before her, clashing against her spear with his bare claws.

He pushed against her weapon with immense strength but Vaggie wasn’t going to let him fuck with her like this. She kneed him in the groin, which made Alastor double over, before twirling her spear once and stabbing it right into his back!

She heard the satisfying sound of her blade generating bone and meat before her eyes widened in horror as Alastor melted into shadows right before her eyes. He reappeared a few feet to her left and grabbed her by the throat. She flailed, dropping her spear and clawing the hands at her neck. Alastor’s eyes fully healed, like she had never even taken a swipe at him. Vaggie tried to bite his hand when Alastor pulled her close.

“You’re protecting a liar.” He whispered before tossing her into the crowd of demons, knocking all the air out of her.

Charlie’s eyes widened as Alastor took steps towards her. He stopped when somebody bonked him on the head with his own microphone.


	5. Web of Truths

“Look, asshole!” Angel said, picking and holding up one of Charlie’s arms, much to Charlie’s displeasure. “If redemption was just a ploy to fuck with you then how are you going to explain these burns?!”

Alastor tilted his head curiously.

“Weeelll?” Angel teased, waving around Charlies limb arm. He stopped when it brought a whimper out of the princess.

“It is a very believable visual effect.” Alastor admitted. “But it could easily be faked.”

“Oh, COME ON! So what, do you think her arm is CGI? Make-up? For what reason? To start a what now, a war?? Al, what are you talking about, that’s ridiculous.”

“Believe me, I have seen much more impressive and nonsensical things over the years. You should listen to my podcasts!”

“I’m not going to listen to your podcasts.” Angel groaned.

“Don’t worry, dear.” Alastor said, giving Angel a condescending if slightly sympathetic look. “I won’t kill her.” 

Angel couldn’t even react before he felt the ground under his feet start to tremble. It wasn’t quite an earthquake but rather the rumble of hunger from a colossal dark and terrible monstrosity, hiding just below the floorboards. Angel could feel a huff of breath coming from below, shaking him to his very core and bringing along the stench of starvation and disease.

“I would tell you all to evacuate but I bet you couldn’t even decide if I was lying or not!” Alastor joked.

One shrill scream was all the crowd needed to trample each other into the ground in order to get out of the building alive. People running left and right, pushing stuff out of the way and jumping out of windows and using one another as tools to break down the walls was just the kind of thing that finally got a reaction out of the eldritch horror below.

One mighty roar and the activity above had turned into panicked screaming as the most insane demons started running around like chickens with their heads cut off or hiding like it would somehow save them.

Everyone was yelling. Everyone was trying to get away. Every exit was already blocked by a dozen bodies trying to get out and Alastor…

Alastor _was laughing at the sheer stupidity of it all._

Angel clenched his teeth. Everyone couldn’t get away from this, not fast enough. Bones would be broken, demons would suffer. Especially Charlie._ Especially HER._

Alastor wasn’t going to try and kill her, oh, no, no! He was going to tear apart hear dreams, _her hotel. He was going to watch her despair. He was going to enjoy it._

_For fucks sake, maybe Husk was right…_

_“You- you can’t do this!” _Charlie yelled, trying to get back on her feet but she was a tad weakened after being blasted by a giant beam of holy energy. “Lucifer will KILL YOU! You didn’t even make a deal with us; you can’t just-“

“Unfortunately, I can do whatever I want, dear.” Alastor said, indulging fully in Charlie’s panic. “Not to mention that I doubt your father will be very distraught over the loss of this hotel.

It’s OVER.”

Charlie shook and fell to her knees before shrieking and clawing her nails into the ground. Alastor didn’t stop Vaggie when she came limping back in order to get her girlfriend out of the building. He watched her unhook Charlie’s nails and sweet talk her as Charlie mumbled some strange reassurance that everything would be fine. She was in a complete daze, still smiling the smile of somebody who couldn’t make sense of the situation at all. Like her mind had malfunctioned completely.

The eldritch under their very feet roared as a huge, bloody and hand-like appendages dug itself out of the ground, shattering floorboards and sending hiding demons screaming and running for cover until it all… flinched?

Angel Dust realized it was because he had wrapped himself around Alastor’s in fear.

Alastor blinked at him.

Angel blinked back.

“Can you not?” Alastor asked, weirdly civilized for the current situation.

“Oh, _I’m sorry_.” Angel mumbled. “Kind of _paralysed in fear_ right now.”

Alastor rolled his eyes at that. “You know, **I** have to exit the building at some point too!”

“Yeah but how about you just _don’t destroy it_ and that way we both get to live?”

“I told you, I’m not going to kill anyone.”

“But you’re destroying the hotel and frankly- it makes you look like you’re in the wrong here!” Angel Dust huffed.

Alastor stared at him in utter confusion. “…what do you mean?”

“I mean, if redemption isn’t real then why are you destroying the entire hotel? Really makes it look like you’re trying to cover things up.”

The rumbling stopped and Angel watched as the disgusting piles of flesh that resembled a hand grew smaller and retreated underground, returning into the deep dark abyss leaving only big gaping holes behind.

After a moment Angel awkwardly let go of Alastor.

“Does it really look like that from the outside?” Alastor asked, sheepishly.

“Well, you are trying, _very desperately I might add_, to shut down the dreaded, horrifying ‘Happy Hotel’ right now soooo... yes. You kind of fucked up.”

“Yeesh…”

“Yeesh indeed!”

“Ah, no harm done.” Alastor said and shrugged. “I’ll just crush her hopes and dreams in more civilised ways.” He grinned and it took every ounce of willpower Angel had to not take a few steps away from this dumbass-psychopath. “Please do excuse me as I go and do exactly that!”

Just like that, the Radio Demon left.

Well, he kicked a particularly large demon out of the door-frame, but then he left. Angel could even hear him whistling. What in the actual fuck had just happened?


	6. Calm after the Storm

After Alastor had left the hotel, everyone evacuated, just to be safe.

Charlie made it her duty to prevent anyone from getting too close to the hotel while Vaggie and Angel kicked out everyone who was still inside.

While the moth demon was cleaning out the upper floors, Angel was doing his absolute damndest to get Husk to leave his bar WITHOUT taking every single unharmed bottle with him. The cat demon had hidden behind the counter during the entire attack and was now refusing to leave.

“Look, idiot,” the spider said, after all sweet-talk failed. “for all we know this building could collapse at any minute!”

“For all we know, I might not get a decent drink once I get out of here!” The cat hissed.

Angel groaned loudly before getting out his third set of hands and grabbing as much booze as possible.

Husk raised an elegant eyebrow. “Are you going to give all of that back to me once-“

“Husk, I swear on my entire collection of porn that I will give you every drop of this poison ONCE WE BOTH GET OUT OF HERE!”

“Well, I appreciate it.”

Angel groaned even louder but still managed to get the alcoholic cat outside safely. Vaggie soon joined, dragging a particularly drunk demon with one hand and carrying a particularly cute baby pig with the other. Said pig was promptly taken and hugged by Angel Dust.

“Consider this a ‘thank you’ for saving us.” Vaggie said.

“Oh? You? Thanking ME? Next you’re going to tell me that pigs fly.” The spider said smugly.

“Seriously Angel, thank you…” Charlie said, hugging the Spider demon tightly. “I don’t know what you did but you SAVED the HOTEL!”

“You owe me one.” Was his automatic response, although there was only kindness behind the words.

“I can’t believe Alastor just attacked us.” Charlie said looking at the state of the hotel. “It’s so out of nowhere! What in the world happened?”

“Everything was just going too well. I think he doesn’t want you to be happy.” Vaggie said, taking Charlie’s hand. She’d always been by Charlie’s side, through everything. The fact that they were still together gave Charlie all the hope she ever needed.

“Actually, your Charlie-centred paranoia might be making a good point.” Angel said. “If there is one thing Alastor despises it’s everything that gives demons hope. He probably just couldn’t accept that your methods could _actually work_.”

“I mean, frankly, I didn’t believe it would work either.” Charlie confessed.

“Oh, so I wasn’t alone on that, ok.” Vaggie hummed.

“Wait.” Angel’s eyes widened. “Are you two telling me that NEITHER of you believed in this project?!” he flailed his arms around. “Are you _serious??!”_

“I mean, its redemption!” Charlie explained, sheepishly. “I only ever heard stories about it, bedtime fairy tales from my father. It always sounded far-fetched but after so many exterminations I simply had to give it a try!”

Vaggie shrugged. “I’m only here because of her.”

“Well fuck me then, I actually bloody trusted that you two knew what you were doing!” The spider huffed, crossing both sets of arms defensively.

“But Alastor saw what happened, right? Why is he in denial over it?” Charlie said, changing the conversation and gently touching Angels arm as a way of apologising.

“Dunno, the guy stopped attacking us because I gave him a hug and told him he was being stupid.” Angel shrugged half heartedly.

“And now he’s out to try and find some other way to _RUIN US?!”_ Vaggie said.

“That’s a very paranoid way of putting it but yes.” Angel said.

**_“Fuck.” _**Vaggie’s hands instinctively pulled at her own hair. Charlie tried to quietly soother her through gentle pats.

“I don’t think he’s going to attack any of us though.” Angel continued. “He said he wouldn’t kill anyone and that he was going to be more civil.”

_“And you trust that?!”_

“Well, lying isn’t very civil now, is it?”

“Angel, no offence but we are talking about the RADIO DEMON right now!”

Charlie tried to calm the two down but unfortunately, the rest of the conversation wasn’t very productive.

There was simply no way of knowing certain things, she decided, especially when said thing was Alastor’s line of thinking.

Only time would tell. But she had to focus on getting her hotel back in working order now, before Husk ran out of booze. 

* * *

Alastor stopped in his tracks, just a couple of feet before 666 News’ Headquarters.

Staff and other newscasters walked around him, going in and out, most of them frowning and eyeing the demon suspiciously. The few who didn’t, only didn’t react because they knew Alastor and none of them wanted trouble, not from the dreaded Radio Demon and ESPECIALLY NOT in This Economy!

Doing the hellish job of entertaining the miserable masses was already bad enough as it was and asking Mr Smiles to just please step out of the way simply wasn’t bloody worth it.

And so, Alastor stared at the gates. Watching them open and close. Watching people come and go.

He could feel a headache building in his skull at just IMAGINING Katie Killjoy go on and on about how ludicrous his involvement with the hotel was.

‘MAD, that’s what you are! Total bonkers! Supporting the Happy Hotel, _are you seeking forgiveness_?’

He felt sick. Although, that might be because of the eldritch horror he had summoned, just to banish it seconds later. What a waste of demonic energy.

Still, Alastor was a man who knew what he wanted.

_He wanted to see Charlie’s lie exposed on every screen. _

_He wanted to watch her own patrons tear down everything she had built up. _

He wanted to see her broken and bruised and hollow and crying and sobbing without any worry or care if somebody was watching because it didn’t matter anymore. _Because everybody already knew she was a failure._

Alastor fixed up his bowtie and entered the building.


	7. Small Comforts

The Calm Room, as Charlie liked to call it, was a small and cosy chamber, sandwiched between the most quiet rooms of the hotel; the almost always empty business room and Charlie’s bedroom. It served the purpose of being the room where the magic happened; where conversations were had and therapy was in progress.

The room was filled with a small variety of furniture; an armchair next to a two people sofa, a small coffee table with pencils and pens and some picture frames of artwork of the non-hellish kind.

There was also a small bookcase with all the mental health books that Charlie had been able to gather, which wasn’t a lot since demons didn’t write a lot of unironic self-help but it had been enough to help Charlie get started. She displayed all of them proudly and looking at them always gave her hope for the future, since likeminded demons who took their time to write them must exist out there.

Charlie was seated comfortable in the sofa while feeling absolutely uncomfortable.

It had been a dreadful, miserable day with lots of anxiety inducing conversations and an abundance of fear, noise and financial troubles since a lot of renovations were happening. Vaggie was in full paranoia mode and a lot of patrons were feeling too unsafe to stay; which Charlie couldn’t even blame them for, and it was all quite a lot to handle.

On days like these she wished she had backup therapists that could take her place…

Still, the chair was comfortable and her company was pleasant.

“So now, every time I see apples, I think of him and my day is ruined!” Angel Dust said, huffing in frustration. “Like, that doesn’t even make sense! You told me to make a list but _everything_ is on that list at this point. I can’t go a day without somehow being reminded of Val; he’s everywhere!”

Whatever cryptic deal Angel had made with Valentino; it was permanent. 

Charlie smiled a sad smile. “Despite that… I’m glad you are still making that list. Doing your homework is an important step of therapy.”

Angel was being very good.

He had been surprisingly compliant all day, going as far as not-flirting with any of the construction workers, as far as Charlie knew at least, and being very obedient and swift during their new evacuation practice. It was frankly quite surprising how he… No… no, it wasn’t surprising at all.

Despite his flamboyant act, Angel knew how to keep his head down; how to avoid trouble when everyone was already anxious and irritated. It was how he had survived his family; how he had survived Hell.

Only when he felt it was safe to do so did he show his bright colours; striding around confidently like he owned the place, wearing bright pink dresses and wigs and make up so colourful it could sear your eyes.

Charlie couldn’t wait to go back to that.

“Oh, I always do my homework~” Angel dust said. He didn’t really have his heart in the act but Charlie understood that flirting was an important coping mechanism for Angel. She had no intention of telling him to cut it off. “Anyway, let’s talk about something else, otherwise I’m going to start associating you with Val too.”

Charlie went through her previous notes on Angel Dust.

“I told you last time that you should try talking to new people.”

“Oh! Yeah, I mean… I talked to some of the girls in the studio, trying to be all friendly, which was like SUPER WEIRD, right? Because usually when I’m being friendly, I’m trying to get somebody to fuck me or like… Whatever, that didn’t really work out.”

“Super weird?”

Angel raised a sceptical eyebrow. “Well, we’re in Hell in a porn studio! Why… be _friends_? I mean, we’re dead; who cares!”

“You’re still alive Angel and I think it would be really helpful for you to have some new people in your life.”

“Because you can’t be my friend?” Angel asked, a sad reminder.

“I am your friend.” Charlie said. “I am but I can’t spend enough time with you and Cherri bomb is Cherri bomb, do you understand?”

“Yeah yeah, whatever…”

“So, it didn’t work out with those girls.”

That agitated Angel. “YEAH! They were SO WEIRD! They gave me looks like I was trying to poison their drinks or something and I mean, these are people that I see and talk to on a regular basis! I don’t… I don’t understand why I’m such an outsider to them.”

Angel Dust wasn’t the only one who knew how to keep his head down. Those girls valued their life too much to try and mess with an Overlords favourite toy.

They didn’t want any more of Valentino’s attention than they already got.

Charlie couldn’t blame them. Yet, it was obvious that this kind of behaviour was isolating Angel more and more, leaving him feeling rather trapped with Valentino’s influence looming over him wherever he went.

“My clients are being cool, I guess. Most of them don’t really take me seriously or just hang with me in order to fuck me afterwards but it’s _something_… it’s been helping.”

“I’m very glad to hear that!” Charlie said and Angel smiled. “What about the people at the hotel?”

“Oh, Vaggie just_ ADORES ME!_” Angel expressed, stewing about his limbs in an explosion of over-acting.

“Let’s not talk about Vaggie.” Charlie said, eyeing the door. “Who else?”

“Niffty has been sweet…” Angel hummed, trying to put his thoughts into words. “But whenever I talk to her it feels like I’m standing in the way between her and the un-swept floors.”

“It’s still good that you tried.”

“Husk has been… huh, Husk has been pretty nice actually. Never even noticed…”

“Maybe you should try and talk to him more.”

“Oh, I’ll bug him, don’t worry!” he said with a wink.

“Who else? Any other patrons maybe?”

“Dunno, they’re… a bit scared looking. Or like, super… _drugged up_… ‘bad influence’ and the like. I’ll keep looking but I don’t know how you can tolerate them.”

_Sometimes I don’t know either_, Charlie didn’t say.

“But yeah.” Angel scratched at his face, thinking. Charlie wouldn’t have studied the expression if she hadn’t noticed how forced it was. Like Angel had been trying to bring something up all this time but was trying his best to be subtle about it. “There is Alastor.”

“Oh! Yeesh…” Charlie frowned. “I hope the experience of him… doing THAT… I hope it didn’t scar you.”

“I wouldn’t say I’m _scarred_. Sure, it was scary, but Alastor wasn’t trying to actually hurt anyone.”

“Um… ok.” She noted the reply down for future reference. It was an odd thing to say and she would bring it up later but right now, she needed more information on this. “What do you think of Alastor?”

Angel slid down on the sofa, looking at the ceiling with a grin. It was rare for him to do that and Charlie usually cherished the sight of Angel looking through his memory to find the nice and fond ones… but right now, she feared this might be some kind of delusion Angel was conjuring to cope.

“He’s TOTALLY my type!” Angel said. “You know, strong enough to beat up anyone who might wrong me, sophisticated enough not to punch the creepy fans that I love so much.”

Charlie raised an eyebrow. “By that description he seems very willing to hurt people.”

You’d think that BUT!” Angel countered, suddenly very enthusiastic. “He’s never hurt me… EVER! Like, not even by accident, not even during his rampage yesterday! In fact, he assured me he wouldn’t kill anyone for like no reason! And a few days ago-“ he took a deep breath. “A few days ago, he had me pinned to a wall, right?”

Charlie jumped in her seat. “What?!!”

“It was a dark room and he pinned me to a wall and it was just…” Angel looked sad. “…**red eyes**.”

“Oh, Angel…” Charlie frantically searched her memory, devasted to realize it must have been her fault. “I didn’t know, I-”

“But… but he backed off. He told me it wasn’t as much fun when I wasn’t smiling and I just felt… safe!”

“It didn’t trigger you…” Charlie realized.

“It really didn’t! And we talked! We _talk_ now! He’s… nice. I _like_ him! He’s always been that way towards me and I think he enjoys it too? It’s like, _what do you call it_, a healthy dynamic?”

Charlie stared.

Alastor did a lot of bad things… but for some reason he never did anything to hurt Angel, not even because of his arrangement with Charlie but seemingly out of some unspoken respect.

The more Charlie thought about it, the more it made sense. Angel was her go-to to defuse Alastor and he had even stopped the Radio Demon from destroying property.

“I don’t know about others but he won’t ever hurt me!” Angel explained. “Not to mention, he’s straight edge.”

“Pretty sure he drinks.” Charlie said, rolling her eyes and giggling, despite herself.

“Well, yeah! But it’s so occasional that I say he’s straight edge by Hell’s standards.”

“Angel, you shouldn’t have to lower your standards just because you’re in Hell.” Charlie mused.

“I’m not!” Angel insisted. “I mean, he doesn’t even like sex which would usually make me just back off because I mean, why befriend somebody if they’re not going to fuck you in the ass-“

“Angel!”

“But he’s just so much fun! It’s so fun to tease him and compete in this weird cat and mouse game we build together! It’s like we both think we’re hot shit and trying to one up one another, like every time I do something stupid he has to do something stupider and use up all of his demonic energy to woo me or something!”

Angel mentally took a step back. “It’s so much fun just watching him… do stuff! I mean, the way he talks and acts, it’s just ridiculous, but it’s so hypnotizing! The way he bragged about shit his fucking MOM taught him and those dad jokes?? He’s so full of himself, how can anyone NOT like him??”

“He does have a charm.” Charlie admitted.

“He’s not from Hell! He doesn’t act like it!” Angel laughed. “But I bet if I told him any of that he’d never speak to me again!”

“You don’t know that!” Charlie said, surprised that she was supporting this.

“Nah, it’s fine. He’s not my friend but he is helping me build trust again and get my cardio in or whatever.” Angel dismissed. “I can’t believe I’m swooning so hard over an Overlord like some kind of teenager.”

“Angel, no comparing yourself to teenagers!”

He laughed. “Right… Yes, ma’m!”

“Now, for homework…”

“Ugh, please don’t ask a lot from me. I’m not busy but I’m planning on sulking today…”

“I believe you had mentioned something about a disco happening every Sunday.” Angel tried to look innocent. “Since you’re so good at orchestrating this stuff behind my back, might as well make it official. Karaoke tonight.”

If Angel could look any more full of himself, he would. “I guess I could do that… what’s in it for me?”

“I have a plan…” Charlie grinned devilishly.


	8. Sips of Love

When Alastor returned a couple of days later, he found Hazbin Hotel in a much better condition.

The new windows had been installed but not yet tinted in those gorgeous colours and the floorboards looked fine but way too new in some spots. Still, it was _almost_ as if nothing had happened. Well, except for the terrified stares he was getting.

The news of the Radio Demon having returned quickly spread and as per the new protocol, Charlie helped everyone evacuate through the back door. They all waited outside, dreading what would happen next. Dreading the imminent destruction of… something.

But it never came.

Thirty minutes later Husk got bored of waiting and returned inside.

He found that Angel had never left.

They looked almost peaceful, spread out on the sofa that was so often occupied by other demons, Alastor wresting the spider out of his personal space while Angel was laughing hysterically. Well, it WAS peaceful considering Alastor looked tired enough to carry groceries with the bags under his eyes and Angel was involved.

Husk crossed his arms and cleared his throat, which got their attention. Angel’s first instinct was to wave, while Alastor’s was to pretend to care.

“Ah, Angel! There is a protocol happening, don’t you know??” Alastor said.

“Heavens!” Angel exclaimed, somehow already on board with Alastor’s bullshit. “How could I have forgotten?? My, Alastor, what if it wasn’t just a test this time what if there’s an ACTUAL murderer on the lose!”

And the two laughed, completely ignoring Husk once more. The cat demon felt his understanding of Alastor as well as the world as a whole decrease and settled down behind his bar.

“Indeed. Why run away when you can sit on the sofa?” Alastor shrugged.

“I never get to sit on this sofa.”

“I’ve seen you on it before…”

“In somebodies lap?”

“In somebodies lap on the sofa.”

“Technically not on the sofa, then.”

“Don’t be smart with me.”

There were many reasons why Angel had decided to ditch the protocol and Alastor’s very obvious need for stress relief was only one of them. He looked like he had been spending the last 48 hours by shovelling grey uninteresting dirt all day, seeing how easily entertained and unkempt he was.

Or, at least unkempt by Alastor’s standards, the weirdo was never seen wearing anything but the tidies clothes, even if they were a tad ripped.

Now, there was dust on Alastor’s shoes and pants… and, well, there were the blood splatters coating his suit but the strands of hair that were out of order would definitely haunt Angel the most.

“Do you want me to catch you up on stuff that happened?”

“If it’s interesting, I suppose.” Alastor shrugged.

“Ah, well, I don’t know if you would consider Charlie wearing a hazmat suit interesting…” Alastor laughed at that. “Or Vaggie having a breakdown over her inability to kiss her. She was _super torn_ between her paranoid devotion to protecting Charlie and her inability to suck on her lips!”

“Disgusting! Please do continue.” Angel giggled at that.

“Eh, it ended in a boring way. Now Charlie just puts an awkward distance between me and her when we do therapy.”

“Oh, right, you do that.” Alastor said, slightly put off. “It’s never too late to make lifestyle choices, I suppose! Even after death!”

“You can’t judge me.” Angel purred. “You look like you’re on the verge of a mental breakdown.”

Alastor waved his hand dismissively. “Tired. What else is new?”

“Well, Charlie asked me what we could do to motivate the patrons, and so we did karaoke last night.”

“That’s such a splendid idea! I can’t believe I missed that.” Alastor shook his head dramatically. “I could have replaced random songs in my radio show with the karaoke versions! Confuse and torture my own listeners!”

“I recorded it for you.” Angel said. He neatly placed the tape recorder into Alastor’s hands.

It even had a tiny, pink bow-tie on it.

Alastor looked like a deer in headlights. “I don’t know what to say!”

“You’re welcome sweetie!”

Alastor got up from the sofa, much to Angels disappointment and perched himself on a bar stool, gesturing for Angel to do the same.

“Let me buy you a drink.” he suggested.

“Well, I’d LOVE to challenge you to a drink-off but you look like you’d pass out after your second glass.”

“I wouldn’t. I would also rather not owe someone like _you_.”

“Someone like_ me?_ What do you mean? Cute? Gorgeous? Able to stand straight?”

“Can I buy you a drink, gorgeous?” Alastor said, straightening.

_“No.”_ Angel grinned. “You’re going to owe me FOREVER!”

Alastor shook his head. “I insist.”

“Oh, well if you INSIST on paying then…”

Husk’s frown deepened. “Oh no…”

* * *

Charlie stood awkwardly in the distance, looking at the hotel. A plane flew in the background, dropping bombs on newly rebuilt orphanages filled with demons who had diaper fetishes and Charlie sighed.

“Maybe we are overreacting?”

“Nope.” Vaggie said.

“But I mean, in the grand scope of things, destruction happens… it’s not that weird or crazy.”

“He tried to destroy it just to fuck with us.” Vaggie hissed. “We are taking no risks. Let him die of boredom in there!”

“Well… sure.” Charlie looked at the crowd of patrons, anxiously waiting and looking around. “Guys! Who wants to go eat ice cream??”

The patrons perked up.

“Charlie… no.”

“Charlie yes.”

* * *

“The usual?” Husk asked, with a sense of dread in his tone.

“Yeah, sweetie.”

“Ughhhh…”

Alastor sipped his Whiskey and stared at Husk like some kind of hawk. Husk groaned some more before getting out multiple colourful bottles that Alastor didn’t recognize. He mixed the colourant with liquor and started stacked it in a tall glass, layer after layer, with an excruciating amount of effort, until he had an entire rainbow in a glass.

Husk sighed and put a small plastic monkey and a large pink straw in the drink before handing it to Angel Dust.

“You’re just a show-off, aren’t you?” Alastor said, eyeing Angel with a strange kind of fondness.

“Look who’s talking.”

“Touché!”

“**_Please _**tell me you won’t get the same, Alastor.” Husk whined.

“Well, the amount of suffering it puts you through would certainly be worth it!” Alastor purred.

“You better tip me for this.” Husk mumbled and Alastor smiled very very widely.


	9. Proof of Delusions

By the time Husk was done with the colour green, Charlie and the rest were cautiously returning to the Hotel, some with ice cream cones in their hands.

Charlie and Alastor exchanged some tense glances but the latter didn’t say anything and returned his attention to Angel so Charlie let out a sigh of relief. Slowly, things around them turned back to normal, people buzzing from room to room, helping with some minor construction work and other chores, living out their regular routines, while making sure to stay as far away from the Radio Demon as possible.

As per the usual, the ‘dealing with Alastor’ chore was all left to Angel Dust.

“Another one?” he asked, making Husk puff up in pure annoyance.

“I _shouldn’t_.” Alastor said, looking quite tipsy already.

“And here I thought you had a higher tolerance~”

“Hold that though.” Alastor said, hoping out of his bar stool and strolling up to the entrance. Both Husk and Angel watched curiously as he opened the front door to reveal a giant camera as well as three very surprised looking demons who hadn’t even had the pleasure of knocking. The one-eyed demon holding a microphone recovered first and greeted Alastor. “Find and follow the princess. You’ll know what to film when you see it.”

“Sure boss, but you know that if there isn’t anything worthwhile then…” and he wiggled his fingers in what was clearly an attempt to appear spooky.

“Right! Hurry up now, I have a date.”

The one-eyed demon shrugged and very cautiously entered the building. After a few moments of hesitation, the crew joined.

_“You are all a bunch of cowards, aren’t you?”_

“We are not! Come on guys, hurry up already!”

And with that, the crew disappeared.

“A date, eh?” Angel Dust nudged Alastor with his elbow.

“Anything to get those boys off my back.” 

“Oh, suuure.” Angel blinked slowly, fluttering his eyelashes and making Alastor efficiently uncomfortable. He giggled. “So that’s what you’ve been up, is it?”

“I’m planning on capturing Charlie’s fraud on film and publicly shaming her with the evidence.” Alastor explained. “As you do.”

Angel stared. “Still riding the denial-train?”

Alastor rolled his eyes and it reminded Angel of the denial locomotive’s rolling wheels and it passed him by going absolutely fucking normal at top speed. _Choof choof_, it went, _metaphorically_.

“Have _you_ ever hired a private camera crew?” Alastor asked, pulling Angel out of his thoughts.

“OH!” Angel beamed. “You know it! I mean, it’s part of my job description to be filmed but I did direct some small projects of my own!” he boasted.

“Oh?” Alastor said and Angel practically exploded.

“Yeah! Oh my god, it was so fucking great, I got to basically live out my ultimate sexual fetishes! I got to tell EVERYONE what to do! **I WAS THEIR GOD**!”

Alastor nudged his chair further away and then nodded understandingly. “Don’t mind me, proceed.”

“Oh, come on. You’re only acting this way because you’re so used to ordering around your people or whatever.”

“My people or whatever? It’s amusing how little you know about how being an Overlord works."

"Get off your high horse pervert."

"Pervert? You are the one sexualising very average things!"

"Like owning a tall horse? Bossing people around is a privilege and privilege is my sexual fantasy! Live a day in my shoes and you would understand."

"I’d rather not, thank you very much."

"Nah, you’d like it. You’d be great at all the dancing bits."

Alastor was stuck trying to decide whether he should back away, lean forward or laugh.

Angel shrugged. “Whatever, Valentino doesn’t really let me do those kinds of sets anymore. I guess it was fun while it lasted… And, hey! People liked them! They found them to be quite ‘emotionally investing’.”

“Emotional… investing? Didn’t you say something about your, uh…”

“Ultimate sexual fantasy? Yeah, I had this buff bug-demon-monstrosity tell me I’m his beautiful baby girl and that he would punch anyone who fucked with me even slightly.” Angel swooned. “Then we fucked, he made me a sandwich and then we had 20 minutes of him listening to me talk about my day while we cleaned up the set together.”

“Must have been a really good sandwich...” Alastor said. Angel looked even more proud, if that was even possible. “I can safely say that my experience hiring a crew has been less than pleasant.”

“I mean, I get it. For the longest time, they wouldn’t even listen to me, _I swear_, it was like they expected me to suck them all off before they were actually going to do their bloody job…”

Alastor stifled a laugh and returned his arms to a more comfortable position on the counter. “I’m glad you understand; It has been an absolute pain to even get them here!”

“They looked pretty official. TV folk?” Alastor nodded. “Don’t tell me you spoke to Killjoy!”

“Know her?”

“Do I! Keeps talking smack about me!” he took a swing from his surprisingly well-crafted drink before imitating her to a tee. _“Oh, if it isn’t the _GAY_ porn star Angel Dust! How unfortunate that most porn-addicts don’t have STANDARDS!” _he shook his head as Alastor clapped. _“_Who does she think she is?! I swear, one day somebody is going to kill her.”

“Well, not her but maybe somebody close to her.” The Radio Demon shrugged easily, taking slow sips of his drink. Angel did not notice the predatory look in his eyes.

“Yeah, I guess. Anyway, no wonder you look so scruffy! I bet she made you walk miles to get all the necessary paperwork sorted out!”

“I look scruffy?” Alastor said, glancing at his reflection in the whiskey and trying to tidy his hair with his claws.

“Here, let me fix that up for you.” Angel said, getting out his pink comb.

As angel crawled up onto the counter to get a better angle on things, Alastor moved his hands away once more, leaning away as much as the fixed bar chairs allowed.

“Relax dude, it’s just a comb.”

“Ah, well, I suppose you’re right. Just…” and Alastor leaned closer in.**_ "̄ͦͦ̀̀ͬ҉̜̘̜̩͚͎̖D͕ͦ͗̐̌ͮ̌̄O̞̻̦̱͎͉̣ͫ̐ͩ̅ͪ͞Ñ̛͈͊̍̉ͨͭ̽'͚̖̈́ͣ̐͂ͩ̂̌T̢̪̣̯̈́ͥͯ̊ͭͬͣ ͫ̅̍̐̏͛̑͏̗̜̙̹F̤̞̤̃̇͆U͖̫ͧ̋͊͂ͩC̥͙̤̹Ḳ̟̙̣͍̠̲̽̈́̔̿͌̀͞I̲͉͍̦ͤ̓̃͐̔̇̆͡NͭͦG̱͙̳̝̱͒̋͛̅͗̌ ̢̗͖͎̤̋͊ͭ̐͋̈̚T̵͆R͙͚̼̦̜Y̷̘̠͓̼̝̝ ̼̱͎͑̂̉͛ͦA̰͉ͤ͑̅̾̅̽̆N̯̭͚̩̘Y̭ͤȚ̜͍̎̓Ĥ͉̹͇̮̮͈͉̇̾I̤̣͔̫̣͔̮ͬͫ̎̀N̢̟͉͉͚͎ͫ̈́̓̓̒G̷̩͈̗͔̞̪̓̃̉͑̍ͦ.̨̫͙̜̤̠ͩͫ"̵̳̥̰͖̟͔̪̒̊̓̇̒͌_**

“Yeah, whatever. I’m going to have to touch your face, by the way.” Angel said, completely unaffected by his intimidation attempt.

“If you must…”

And so, Angel cupped Alastor’s face and just like that, the Radio Demons smile vanished and big curious eyes looked up at Angel.

“Awww…”

Before Alastor could start getting annoyed, a second pair of arms started combing through his hair and, admittedly, Angel was very skilled at avoiding his antlers during the process.

“I guess I can now say that…” Alastor said, with an awful lot of smugness for somebody in his situation. “I don’t want you out of my hair.”

“Terrible.” Angel said, putting the comb away neatly. “But I didn’t expect you to agree with me, love.”

“Don’t you get used to it!” The squished smiling face said. “Now if you would please let go of me, that would be great.”

“Don’t have to tell me twice.” And Angel complied, although, he didn’t get off the table. He felt like he belonged there, sort of.

“You’re a strange one…” Alastor said, feeling his hair to make sure it’s all in the right place. It was.

“Do I not fit into any of your boxes, old man?”

“No, it’s more like you used to fit into one box but now you’re slowly but surely proving my assumptions wrong.”

“Yeah, I know.” Angel said, pushing up his chest fluff. “I’m amazing.”

“Well, you’re thoughtful, that’s for sure.”

“What, I gave you one gift and now I’m thoughtful?” Angel laughed.

“No, you cheered me up. Not really something I would expect from a sex worker.”

Angel pulled a face. “Clearly you don’t know any.”

Alastor had never seen Angel disappointed before, he was intrigued. “I suppose I don’t.”

“Don’t assume shit like that about other people. Nobody is born evil and I’ve never met a prostitute who lacked a heart.”

Alastor smirked in that smug way that made Angel want to either kiss or punch him. “Are you going to tell me there’s a _rainbow _inside of them?”

“Nah, dude. They can’t _all_ be gay!”

“Ugh.” Alastor said, feigning annoyance. He seemed to be in a much better mood than before, which made Angel quite happy. “Thank you for the hairdo, my dear!” he got up and took a few steps before he stopped, seemingly considering something.

Angel raised an eyebrow.

“I’m always free on Thursdays.” Alastor said. “What about you?”

“Are you asking me on a- uh, hang out?”

“No, let’s not call it that either… let’s call it a competitive round of bowling!”

“Yeesh, you have issues!” Angel teased.

“It’ll be my treat.”

Angel hummed. “I guess I could ditch my clients on Thursday.”

“That’s good news!” Alastor declared. “Now! I’m off to loom over my TV crew while I worry intensely about you taking up all my Thursdays from now on! I’ll see you around.”

Angel facepalmed and burst out laughing as the very satisfied looking Radio Demon walked away.

_This one is different,_ Alastor thought.


	10. Static Exhaustion

It was not that much later when Alastor retreated to his room in the hotel room, his stomach cramping painfully from the alcohol and, admittedly, stress. He was practically drenched in sweat and so exhausted that he didn’t mind rolling onto his bead and allowing himself a moment of quiet.

His bed was a lovely burnt-red, which wasn’t exactly uncommon as rooms in this hotel went. What was uncommon where all of the taxidermy heads, mounted onto the walls.

No, not just animals. _That wasn’t impressive. _Demons too. It was hard to kill demons and these were the ones that he was most proud of.

They were just for show, obviously, and didn’t _actually_ speak but Alastor had put some serious thought into putting microphones into their mouths to make them sing and potentially freak the living HELL out of some visitors one day.

There was a new edition to the room. Alastor chuckled despite himself, taking out the recorder Angel had given him and placing it on his bedside cabinet.

It had been worth it but… but drinking on an empty stomach had been an absolutely dreadful idea. He hadn’t eaten much in the last few days, or slept for that matter… which wasn’t exactly smart OR_ sane_…

Although, he was feeling a lot less tense and a lot more rational now.

Which made him realise…

No, the demon heads weren’t at all fucked up BUT, had he really worked himself to the bone over some nonsensical prank Hazbin Hotel had pulled on him? …yes. Yes, he actually had.

He had wasted an eternity getting a crew together and a ‘pitch’ which involved Charlie’s complete public humiliation so Alastor had assumed Killjoy would be on his side but, ugh, no.

He buried his face in the soft material of the weighted blanket.

No, she loved herself more than she loathed Charlie. She didn’t give him some time on live tv that easily. No, he just fucking had to orchestrate some manic kidnapping plan! He hadn’t even known she had a sister and now he had to promote some of his spies which would just mean more in-fighting,

All just to shame some girl, who was already being shamed by TV people!

…he might have acted _a tad_ stupid.

_Maybe_ he had let his pride get the best of him. After all, how dare some princess, with her head in the clouds and her reputation in the gutter, pull this sort of guilt-inducing prank on one of the most respectable de-

Guilt inducing?

Alastor turned and looked up at the ceiling.

Guilt?

Well, yes, if redemption really had been possible then he would feel pretty guilty.

Demons didn’t deserve a happy ending, Alastor knew that.

They were abusers. He had seen it, over and over and over and over. They hit children and women, tortured people, murdered and took drugs to do all of those things but more intensely; THAT’S WHY THEY WERE IN HELL!

That’s why he was an Overlord, he was different. Special.

He was here on a noble mission. He would end the cycle of abuse. He would do everything in his power to _break _these people.

His mouth watered at the thought.

_Make them suffer so terribly that they couldn’t bear the idea of ever inflicting pain on others ever again._

And now the facts were telling him that he had achieved the complete opposite?

That he had let some of this filth go up to heaven?

He had been reasonably upset.

Well, maybe even furious.

His mother was in heaven.

But it hadn’t happened.

He wasn’t guilty of anything. The entire thing had just been a lie.

…

How was he even going to film that? Alastor wasn’t sure if Charlie was planning on faking a redemption again and despite all of his men and insider information he wasn’t really sure how he would prove it was all faked.

And who would even care?

The idea that redemption was possible hadn’t spread at all, outside of the hotel. And who would believe those hotel freaks anyway, less their clients…

Although, Charlie’s burns had been weird. And that strange holy energy, he had felt. _Very weird._

There was a story here for sure but was it worth his time?

Alastor sighed.

He had put so much energy into this…

_Lord, he had barely spent any time with his daughters…_

Would anyone even care if he just cancelled it all? He was tired… he didn’t really want to continue this temper tantrum… he had embarrassed himself enough…

Although…

A thought came to mind.

No, he had a solution.

He wouldn’t cancel anything.

Alastor moved over to the edge of the bed and slid off, carefully steadying himself when the obligatory wave of dizziness hit him. He hated this feeling. Was this really a good idea? To talk to Charlie when he was already feeling so unwell? After all, it was her job to see through other people’s facade and work out their issues. Was he really fearing-

Alastor flattened out his suit and stepped out of his room.

He had a phone call to make.


	11. Rose Tinted Glasses

This chapter requires a mild Trigger Warning.

In order to view the Trigger Warning, please highlight the white text right here: References to Abuse, POV of an Abuser

The bright red sky shone light into Valentino’s Penthouse, turning the bright pink walls into a magenta colour.

Valentino was hunched over, squinting at a tiny computer screen, while Mira silently judged him. It wasn’t a one man job to manage a TV studio as well as the entire sex industry of Hell, but Valentino enjoyed overseeing things, to a point. Checking up on the most important people’s schedule and looking at the numbers of the less important people.

“Looks good.” He mused. “Although I don’t get why Katie insisted on keeping that spot open… is there going to be a special guest?”

Mira looked at Valentino with the eyes of somebody who no longer cared if they lived or died.

“You work for Killjoy, right?” Valentino tried, slightly taken aback but not wanting to show it.

“I don’t know her inner workings.” Mira said. She was too tired to go into the kidnapping. Not to mention, if Alastor or whoever fucked over her boss, she’d cry tears of joy, assuming she was still capable of doing that.

“Well, I’m sure she has something planned.” Valentino said, waving at Mira dismissively. The dog demon looked at him with dark empty eyes. “Uh, you can go.” Valentino explained, at which point Mira left.

“Yeesh… How does Katie treat her staff?” Valentino said, to nobody in particular.

Maybe the spotlight was getting to her…

Valentino placed himself into his gigantic, hear shaped office chair, rolling himself to the window of his suit. It was quite a view, you could see practically all of the second as well as the third circle of hell, the fourth looking like mountains in the distance.

_Whip hadn’t come back from her business trip_. It had been 4 days.

She, Killjoy and him… they had founded the entire Entertainment Industry of Hell, were the rumours true? Had she really left them?

He sighed, he couldn’t even blame her.

_It was difficult getting people to cooperate. _

Especially when they got to drink so much ego juice by being admired by so many low-lives… his whores… he did still feel weird after disciplining them, sometimes. He was still weirded out by ‘work accidents’.

Prostitutes died _all the time_; it was just part of the job. They had all agreed to his terms and conditions when he took them under his wing, it was FINE.

And yet…

Sometimes, on very strange days, Valentino wondered if he was doing the right thing.

Sometimes he felt like he was just delaying the inevitable. Like he was pushing and pulling along all these people for what? Profit and entertainment? What did either of those matter anymore? After all, he was_ dead_. They were all dead…

But ‘life’ went on.

He was in Hell. A bit too late to question the morality of things.

_He touched the window with one hand, feeling the warmth, seeping in from the outside._

He remembered standing here with Katie. His eyes had been red from crying and she…

_It’s all just show-business_, she had said. _It’s all just flashy lights and fancy colours. Fun._

He still loved her.

The phone rang and Valentino practically jumped out of his skin.

_Right,_ there were things to do.

He picked up the receiver expecting to hear about a change in appointments or maybe something from Killjoy’s assistants but instead…

“Hello my good sir or madame! I’ve been on the line for quite some time now and if you don’t want me to come there personally AGAIN then I would advise you to-“

“Speaking.” Valentino said, taking off his glasses and rubbing at his eyes. Alastor… Alastor was never good news.

“Ah! Finally! Val, how have you been?”

“GREAT. Why are you calling.”

“Come now! Where are your manners? Is this really the way to treat-“

“Is this about the gift you sent?? It was very funny, thank you.” Valentino looked over at the hand-stitched plushy/voodoo doll of himself with great disgust. When you pulled at its string, the voice box in it would say ‘Fuck’. Hilarious.

“I’m glad you liked it! Although, I’m calling you about something else.”

“Great. What is it.”

“I need you to give Angel Dust another personal film project.”

“What, that soft-core garbage?” Valentino rolled his eyes. “Yeesh, I had assumed since he was so fucking extra with his kinks that he would create something spectacular but _nooooo_, he looped back around and made THAT.” Valentino paused. “Why are you even interested in _Angel’s films_?”

“I owe him a favour.”

“OH? YOU??” Valentino cackled. “What did he give you? _A hug??_”

“He talked some sense into me on more than one occasion, I suppose.”

“Fucking ANGEL DUST?! That guy has sense?? To give out????”

“_Clearly not, if he’s working for you_.”

Valentino shrugged, moving his chair from side to side. “He doesn’t really have a choice. Anyhow, I don’t really care much for him but he _does_ bring back customers. Quite the influence, quite a star! You’re going to have to offer me a pretty good deal if I’m supposed to just play in a sand castle for weeks on end.”

“I have some blackmail, my good sir!”

“Oh!” Valentino grinned a toothy smile. Maybe Alastor wasn’t be so bad after all. “Tossing one of his co-workers under the bus, eh?”

“Oh no! It’s blackmail on _you_, dear!”

Valentino froze, the grin dropping from his face and pummelling down all 69 stories until it reached the ground floor, wished everyone a nice life and left for good.

“Are you… are you serious, Alastor.”

“Quite!”

“Is _this_ really worth making me your enemy?”

Alastor laughed in that static way that Valentino hated so much. “We’ve hated each other for decades! No need to take it so personally.”

“You know what? You’re right! _What did I expect from you_, I have no idea! Do you have any allies left, Alastor? Vox left. You killed half the Overlords when you got here and the other half well, we aren’t exactly _fond of you_.”

“Let _me _worry about that. Now, do we have a deal?”

Valentino massaged his forehead and sighed. “Let me see that blackmail first…”

“I’ll get Echo on it.”

Valentino groaned in exasperation. “I’d bet money she’s listening in on us anyway.”

“Probably. _She’s good.”_

Despite ALL OF HIS POWER Alastor was still walking all over him, it was infuriating. His personal computer made a sound and Val navigated through terabytes of porn until finally he found the email application inside of his 'Homework from 1800' folder. He really needed to get one of his assistants to sort through all those files.

Val looked through the billions of spam emails until, with a ‘bling’ sound, a new email arrived.

It was titled: _She’s good_.

“Echoing the last said phrase, pretentious bitch…” Valentino hissed. His anger grew even more when he looked at the attachment. “If Velvet finds out about this… I’m fucking screwed.”

Valentino fished out his phone. It would be worth the financial loss.

‘Hey Angie Baby, got a new project for you.’

‘Sounds exciting! What is it Boss?’

‘It’s important. I’m signing you up for a personal film shoot from Wednesday on, you don’t have important clients after that anyway.’

‘Wednesday? Oh, no. Boss, I have something I need to do on Thursday.’

‘No. Wait’

‘A film shoot?’

‘Consider it my treat for being so good, sugar.’

‘Oh HAHA’

‘YEAH WILL DO!’

‘Thank you, Val! Forget I ever said anything! You are the best!’

Angel hugged himself, unable to quite comprehend much of anything.

It had been so long since good things had happened to him, he had forgotten what it actually felt like.

“Alastor…” Angel said. _“You crazy bastard.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Heya, Editing Crit here! Finally adding the chapter names and text colours ;3
> 
> For all you Homestuck lovers I’d like to point out that Angel Dust texts in Roxy’s iconic pink colour and Valentino texts in Condesce’s dark red colour. I was considering giving him Terezi’s soft turquoise shade to compliment his skin colour but imma be real with you for a second; I like Terezi. You know? You get me?? XD


	12. A Niffty Interview

Blue; the Colibri demon responsible for lighting, Blake; the beast behind the camera and Brock the reporter, whose one eye was obscured by his countless dreadlocks, were all b-list camera folk who would definitely not be featured on any good channels as well as that much of this fanfiction.

Brock, as the team’s spokesperson, had given himself the additional title of ‘leader’ and the other two had played along in order give him the pleasure of walking into dangerous situations first before the real camera crew followed.

Wouldn’t be their first reporter to get eaten.

Still, despite their somewhat-functional group dynamic and minimal fighting, they had not managed to get a single one of the Hotels patrons to talk to them. A fact which might be related to the giant camera the even more gigantic demon Blake was carrying.

After 5 minutes of talking to people and getting no response, the team debated whether or not it was a terrible idea to go back and ask Alastor for direction. _It was._

Luckily for them, during this debate, an especially friendly demon joined them.

“Charlie has been avoiding the lobby!” the small thing explained. “So you won’t find her on the ground floor.”

“And who might you be?” Brock asked, shoving his mic into the small girls face.

“I’m Niffty!” and the neon coloured demon smiled a much too sincere and toothy smile than the crew was used to. Or could ever get used to. “You guys look like you don’t want to be here! Did Alastor hire you? He hired a loot of people and by a lot I mean, like, two but we do a lot so it feels like a lot! Although, only Husk doesn’t want to be here, I TOTALLY want to be here, **I love it here!**” she hissed, her pupil growing to intimidation sizes. “So, I guess I shouldn’t have assumed Alastor hired you, I apologize.”

The group sighed in relief and confusion.

“She’ll talk…” they agreed mutually.

“She’s weird enough for TV but she isn’t Charlie…” Blue said, in the background.

“Would it even be worth it to keep searching for this Charlie character?” Blake grumbled.

“Right! About that!” Brock said, redirection everyone's attention back to Niffty. “You know her, yes?”

“Yes! I mean, who doesn’t? She owns this entire hotel and semi-owns all of Hell. Although, I guess if you saw her on the streets you wouldn’t assume that, the hotel thing sure but not the Hell-thing. But, yes, I think it would be ok by her if I considered the two of us friends. Do you want to be her friend too?”

“Yes.” Brock said flatly. He rolled his eye at the camera, which was a common joke among reporters when talking about Hazbin Hotel.

“If you want to make friends you should probably ditch that giant camera. And the attitude.” Niffty smiled widely. “Charlie doesn’t like cameras. **And Vaggie might cut you for that attitude**.”

“Sorry, Niffty. We can’t leave the camera. Can you still show us where Charlie is?”

“Afraid not! You see I’m awfully AWFULLY busy cleaning this bloodstain off the carpet. It needs to be **GONE**. I can’t work if it isn’t.” the trio looked at each other and then decided to just sigh and roll with it.

“Can we help?”

“Oh, would you??”

“Yeah, sure, we’re being paid by the hour, might as well do our jobs and waste time. Blake, just film Niffty, keep me out of the shot and we’ll say that we were busy interviewing her about… about whatever it is that Alastor is offended by.”

“You mean the Redemption?”

“The what now?”

* * *

Some blackmail always cheered Alastor right up!

“Charlie!” the Radio Demon called, enthusiastically approaching the very worried looking princess.

Vaggie seemed to be on body-guard duties again. A very nicely sharpened spear was pointed at his face the instant he approached them.

“I don’t know _why _you’re back but if you hurt Charlie _you will pay_.” Was the expected insult.

Frankly, Alastor was delighted to have Vaggie here, her presence would hopefully provide him with the minimal adrenaline required for him to stay awake!

“Heeeey, Alastor!” Charlie sent a worried smile in his direction, although it was hard to see, what with the spear so close to his face. “I guess I should thank you for the uh, ice cream break you forced all of us to take?” Charlie laughed awkwardly and then abruptly decided to drop the friendly chit-chat. “Why are you back? What exactly do you want?”

“I wanted to apologize for my behaviour the other-“

“**Cut the bullshit**.” Vaggie hissed, forcing the spear so close that Alastor was forced to take a step back. He didn’t like being forced to take a step back but it would be _rude to break the spear_. “Don’t think that I missed _that crew_ you invited. You’re not here to fucking apologize, you’re here to publicly shame Charlie. AGAIN!”

“That is absolutely correct!” Alastor said, making Vaggie boil with rage. “However, if it was your intention to dazzle and fool your patrons into becoming slaves of an impossible task such as redemption, then I am positively on board! Think about it, Charlie! We could use my camera crew to PROMOTE this!”

“Alastor…” Charlie said.

“It’s such a brilliant idea and I have no idea why I didn’t see it sooner!”

“Alastor you are just reaching new levels of…”

“now that I see the full picture, I am willing to team up with you once more and-“

“…denial.”

“Pardon?”

“Denial. You’re in denial. And I don’t know why… But don’t worry!” And Charlie took in a deep breath and made herself comfortable on Vaggie’s shoulder, lowering the spear she was holding with one hand while holding onto with the other. She smiled sincerely. “We can fix this! You see, I am a very good listener and You are a very good talker! We can work this out, yes?”

“Work this out?”

“Yes! You can tell me why you are having such difficulties with this… particular subject and we can work out the issue!”

“My dear, ‘the issue’ is that Redemption is _impossible_. Are you really trying to deceive me again after I have done nothing but be sincere and help you?”

“BE SINCERE AND HELP??” And just like that, Vaggie had put a nasty cut in his face. “YOU TRIED TO DESTROY THE WHOLE HOTEL!”

By the time Alastor reached up to touch the injury, it had already healed. His patience sadly wasn’t regenerating.

“I felt so _horribly betrayed_ that you would try and fool me like that…” Alastor said, his voice oozing with fake sorrow. “After all that we’ve been through it just _breaks my heart_ that you wouldn’t let me help you with this incredibly brilliant idea! Oh, Charlie, **really**, you shouldn’t have!”

“He’s fucking hopeless.” Vaggie said, lowering the spear once more.

“Don’t say that! It must be difficult… _really difficult_… believing something like this.” And so Charlie turned to face the radio demon. “Alastor, I think it would be best if you just cut all ties with us.”

“Oh?”

“This project isn’t ‘entertaining’ anymore. It’s not what you signed up for because you signed up to watch me fail!” Alastor looked_ very _disappointed. “If you fail to comply… I’ll…”

“You’ll what? Lie to me further? After I _degraded myself_ and tried to _forgive _you? Do you think I’m _entertained_, Charlie? Do you think this is _entertaining_? Do you think it’s FUNNY being lied to by a business partner? Being left in the dark until the last second? Being constantly threatened by her girlfriend while I’m trying to be reasonable? It’s not exactly easy being reasonable with a spear in my face and a knife in my back!”

Charlie went quiet and Vaggie feared the worst.

“Fine.”

“Fine?”

“Fine. I will treat you like a partner. Like a friend. You’ve been with us through thick and thin, you deserve it. I would never let a friend live in denial like this.” And Charlie rolled up her sleeves. “You can look but please don’t touch. It stings when you touch them.”

And, with Charlie exposing her burnt arms to the enemy with nothing but compassion in her eyes, Vaggie almost for a second believed she could convince Alastor.

* * *

Niffty had finished cleaning the carpet and had moved onto the windows. After that, she would move onto the sofas and then some room cleaning and little did the camera trio know that she had absolutely no intention of stopping until the entire hotel was clean.

“Yes, her whole arm was just covered in these strange spiral burns! She hides them with gloves.”

“And… and the egg demons??” Brock asked, visibly shook of what he was hearing.

“Poof! Disappeared! You really should have seen it it was crazy!”

“Did you know them before they…?”

“Well… I met them once! And then I tried to cook them so that was the end of that.”

“U-hu… do you do that often?”

“Do what?”

“Try to eat people?”

“No, not really. That’s Angel’s job.”

“Who is Angel?!!”

“Oh, she’s the flirty girl! Really cool.” The others rolled their eyes. Niffty seemed to admire literally everyone. “Sometimes I see her being chased off by Alastor.”

“Wait, could she be talking about the guy Al was planning to date?” Brock asked, turning his attention to his teammates.

“Yeah, wasn’t that Angel Dust, the porn star?” Blake asked. The others looked at him. “Well, I _DO_ work as a cameraman.”

“I think you’re right.” Blue chirped in. “I wonder if they are serious.”

“Guys,” Brock said. “maybe we should have just filmed that and used it as blackmail!”

“Against the Radio Demon??” Blue screeched.

“…ok so maybe not.”

“Did Alastor really go on a date with her?” Niffty’s eye fluttered. “Aww, that’s so sweet... That makes me happy.” she put the brooms and mops and cleaning products aside for a moment. “I should make them some sweets. Some sweets with hearts on them. They deserve it.”

And so she left, leaving the trio dumbfounded.

“Wow, she’s weird.” Blue chirped.

“It’s not every day you see someone_ actually_ get happy over their friend's success.” Blake agreed.

“Yes but could dating a porn star really be called a success?” Brock asked and was promptly stared at. “…I mean… I mean if you’re _into that_ I guess…”

“What the hell is she even doing in Hell?” Blake grumbled.

Brock pondered this for a moment. “Guys… I have a hunch. Forget Charlie. Let’s keep following _her_.”


	13. Bloody Hell

Trigger Warning (highlight the white text to view it): Violence and Bloodshed

Vaggie’s shock turned to horror when Alastor grabbed Charlie’s arm and dangled her in the air by her wrist before slowly clawing downward into her naked flesh, cutting through arteries and watching the blood squirt out. Charlie yelped and screamed in horror, trying to kick him away but she was up in the air and Alastor was_ just _out of reach.

Vaggie stared, dumbfounded at not only the situation at hand but also her inability to have avoided it, until the wound suddenly closed again with the aid of very high-level demonic healing.

Right, this wasn’t like _last time_. This wasn’t _holy_.

Alastor scratched at the newly healed skin. “Not make-up.” He decided, seeing that the burns remained exactly the same after the healing process.

His hand, the one holding the princess, was then chopped clean off dropping to the ground along with the princess.

_Kill him._

Vaggie threw a knife and Alastor dodged twice, carefully avoiding her spear.

Alastor stepped out of reach, almost making the moth stumble.

“Such sharp edges…” Alastor’s expression grew fond as he _shattered _the end of Vaggie’s spear in with one hand. “It doesn’t suit a lady.”

“You never shut up,_ for a man.”_

A chuckle escaped Alastor. He playfully swiped at her and was promptly grabbed and dragged towards her, throwing him off balance.

Vaggie glared right into Alastor’s soul. He was so close that she could feel his breath. He didn’t falter at all. Vaggie had a brief moment of calm when Alastor’s blood filled her mouth as she ripped his ear off.

* * *

“Soooo, Niffty.” Brock said, with a newly found confidence. “Have you had any rehabilitation since you came here?”

“Hm, not really. Charlie just said that I was welcome to make new friends and to talk to her if there was any trouble!”

“And, uh, have you made new friends?”

“Lots!”

“Any trouble?”

“I told you about the eggs, right?”

“Yes! Yes you did! But was that all?”

“Kind of, sort of. People here have been very friendly. Haven’t had to kill anyone just yet. Never been in a place like this! Only ever heard about it in books and fanfiction! Is this was ‘normal life’ is like, I wonder.”

“I mean…” and Brock looked at his co-workers who seemed equally unsure. “I guess so.”

“That’s cool. I’m so glad! You know, I’ve always wanted to have an actual family! Some people who would always be there for me, these automatic friends, you know?”

“I don’t but go on…”

“You know, like in Harry Potter!”

“Pretty sure those were abusive.”

“Or like in Twilight!”

“Also a very bad example.” Blake commented.

“You know about Twilight?” Blue chirped.

“Look dude, I’m already in Hell-“ Blake huffed.

“Ok, so then like in… um…” and Niffty laughed. “It doesn’t matter. Just people who are around you who aren’t trying to kill you!”

“Sister, you have low _low_ standards.” Blake said.

“Seriously! What kind of fucked up place did you come from?” Blue said.

Niffty shrugged before jumping at the ding of the oven. “It’s done!”

* * *

Alastor started falling backward, seemingly unconscious, he hit the ground with not a thud but more of a ‘slorp’, disappearing into a shadow and jumping back out behind Vaggie, using the momentum of his own fall to slam the moth demon into the ground. _The impact send lightning through her._

Alastor grinned down at her, _relishing_.

_“FUCKING KILL ME, I DARE YOU!”_ Vaggie screamed and Alastor complied by digging the cut off stump of his hand into her face. The blood flew like a river, into Vaggie’s mouth and nose. She chocked, coughing it back up and struggling to get away. The more Alastor’s wound regenerated the stronger his grip on her became.

Her vision blurred, darkening at the edges, Alastor’s manic grin seemingly swallowing her whole, when the grip around her neck loosened. She quickly rolled, getting on all four and coughing up the blood.

“Charlie…” Alastor said, gulping through the nails digging into his Adams apple. “We can still be civil about this!”

Charlie pulled his head back further, by his antlers, until they met eyes.

“No. No we can’t.”

And with one swift movement she ripped a huge chunk out of his throat.

Alastor gasped, blood filling into his lungs. He screamed, a gurgled horrible sound. There was blood everywhere and it was pathetic the way he curled up and chocked, fighting for his life over an injury that could never ever kill him.

A sharp pain in his ribs send him into overdrive, static growing loud all around him.

“Vaggie STOP!” Charlie yelled, stoping Vaggie from spearing Alastor further. The moth demon was shaking and twitching like crazy, covered in blood from her mouth to the broken edge of her spear. “Stop! _It’s over._ It’s over.”

“He didn’t- he didn’t regenerate his hand.” Vaggie stuttered as Charlie slowly morphed back into her normal form. “He’s weak! We can kill him! We can end this!”

Charlie’s claws grew back out and momentarily Vaggie was confused, until she turned around.

There was a bashing sound and Vaggie flinched.

She was not harmed. Nothing, nothing had hit her.

Not, it was the _door._

Somebody had kicked in the door, their hands too busy with a tray of cupcakes. A group of camera-holding weirdos were hot on her heels and Vaggie _would have _dismissed this, if the person holding the tray wasn’t engulfed in a blinding, white light.

“Alastor!” Niffty called. “Oh, there you are! Hi!” she trotted towards him.

Her footsteps left marks on the floor.

Her presence left a sizzle on everyone’s skin.

“You look angry, did something bad happen?” she said and if she smiled Vaggie’s eyes couldn’t tell. She could barely make out Alastor’s shadow and what a terrible shadow it was. He wasn’t moving at all. “I made you cupcakes!”

If Alastor said something, it was made inaudible by the hissing and sizzling.

“Oh and Charlie is here too! And Vaggie! Hi!” Niffty paused and reminisced in the sight of so many of her friends all in one place, looking absolutely fucking horrified but horrified_ together_. “So, hey” she said, awkwardly clearing her throat and looking to the ground. “Everyone, I…! Thank you. Thank you for being my family.”

And in a flash, she was gone.


	14. Technical Difficulties

Highlight Text to view the Trigger Warning: Panic Attacks and Self Harm :(

Vaggie awkwardly shifted her weight from one foot to the other. She had stopped tapping her foot after the reaction it had drawn out of... well.

She looked over at the door she was guarding.

_She wasn’t any good at this._

Ludicrously untalented, really. Never even been able to calm down Charlie when she had been upset.

It was almost _unnerving_ that she actually felt bad for that fucker. He had _hurt Charlie_ and he deserved _everything bad the world could throw at him for that_.

But maybe, just maybe, everything about this situation was _really fucked up_.

She gulped and tried to hum something loud enough to block out the scraping sound.

_Had she caused this?_ By attacking the idiot?

Vaggie was endlessly thankful when her girlfriend returned to rescue her from these thoughts.

“Isn’t this one of those broom closets that we got installed _just for Vaggie_?” Angel asked as Charlie panted.

“Yeah, he just kind of hid there and… and we haven’t been able to get him out and… and I thought maybe he would listen to you.”

“He hisses when we touch the door handle.” Vaggie said, trying to keep any emotion out of her voice. “Charlie hasn’t been able to get any response out of him and it’s been about 15 minutes now.”

Charlie nodded. “And I remembered that you told me during one of our sessions how panic attacks were vaguely commonplace in the porn industry.”

“Aw, you actually listened to that stuff? Uh, yeah. I mean, we are in Hell. Porn gets pretty fucked up down here, it’s really no surprise that-“ Angel refocused. “Uh, I get that I do all the Alastor related things around here but… Alastor is in there, right? What the fuck happened? I thought this was just another one of you guy’s shenanigans!”

Charlie took in a deep breath. “Niffty got redeemed.”

“Oh my gooood!” Angel squeaked. “No waaay!”

Charlie chuckled awkwardly. “Honestly, yes, but it happened right in the middle of our conversation with-“

“Our fight with Alastor.” Vaggie corrected.

“And it resulted in… just look.” Charlie pointed to the ground, to the bottom of the door specifically.

_Under the door, a slimy, sticky, red substance was spreading, forming webs as it moved through the creaks in the floor._

_Blood._

_“Oh.” _Angel said. That couldn’t be good. No matter how south Vaggie’s fight had gotten, Alastor would have healed. And this was just… an absolutely abnormal amount of blood. It was actually _pooling_. “And you can’t get in?”

“There are these shadow arms that he summons whenever we try but the door doesn’t actually have a lock, if that is what you’re asking.”

“Well then!” Angel said, making both girls focus their attention on him. “Away you go!”

“What?” Vaggie said and was quickly grabbed by the arm and dragged away by Charlie.

“I’ll keep the demons away from this area!” she said. “But I’ll be around! Scream if you need help!”

“Will do.” Angel said, watching the two run off. He took a deep breath and counted to ten. He sat down on the ground, next to the ever-growing puddle of blood and leaned into the door.

* * *

The air around Alastor was growing thick.

The scent of blood was mixing with the cheap smell coming off the Cedarwood under his fingers, creating a suffocating concoction.

The way his claws dug into his flesh didn’t hurt anymore.

It was one of his very few comforts, hearing the sound of blood dripping down, the sound of his fingers stirring inside of his arm overpowering the talking coming from outside. Drowning out the idea that there were other people around and not just him with this ludicrously loud drum in his chest that he had no doubt everyone could hear.

Drops of blood travelled down his forearm and towards his elbow where they met up, gathered briefly and then let go. Creating a small splattering sound of water hitting water. His fingers were also creating sounds, similar to knitting wet though or stirring particularly chunky soup, with a change of some water bubbles popping, or maybe those were arteries that briefly healed but were then quickly ripped through once more…

Alastor couldn’t quite breathe right. There was a lot of pressure in his chest. It had started tolerable enough, just some pulling and stretching muscles. He knew this sensation. When he was younger he would often ball up his fist or put a lot of strain into a specific action until everything hurt.

First, his muscles would feel strong and intense but the feeling would soon give way to a slight feeling of exhaustion. Then, soon, the action would cut off the blood flow, making each vein pop out and discolouring his skin, making it look somewhat monstrous. Then the pain would start. This absolutely miserable and dreadful pain. _And then he would laugh._

Alastor wasn’t sure if he was laughing now, or if that was just the sound of his lungs wheezing to get more air. There was a lot of pressure in his chest, after all, and he was pretty sure his heart had imploded some few minutes ago, leaving his breathing hopelessly far behind.

He was on his knees, choking, holding onto the cheap wooden floorboards and stirring his claws into his flesh. The immense heaviness that he had first thought was because of the awful position he was forced into, had grown unearthly heavy… and it kept growing the more thoughts flooded in and out of his brain.

Alastor couldn’t stop shaking

Everyone was against him.

Everyone was against him and he was shaking. Why was it always like this? Everything hurt, he couldn’t fight like this. Why? Why was this happening again? It couldn’t be true, couldn’t be.

He didn’t want to be here anymore.

Alastor forced in another breath only to choke on it some more. It felt like he was breathing-in cinnamon.

He was- he had been- he wasn’t evil, he wasn’t. He had proven Niffty he wasn’t, he had taken care of Echo and her and- but he had bitten off more than he could chew and now-

God, was she dead? She couldn’t be- she wouldn’t- she didn’t have to-

Nothing made sense, nothing added up. 

Charlie’s shrill voice echoed outside, jerking Alastor out of his world. 

He knew these sounds.

He was being hunted. His sins had come to bite him.

Outside, hounds were tapping and talking and yelling and Alastor could see all of their shadows moving around under the door. They were trying to get in. Trying to get _him out_. Scraping at the wood and jiggling the door handle.

This metallic screech of metal rubbing against metal, driven by an unending desire to get in, let the light in, let the shadows in and give him even less space.

What had he done wrong? What had he done wrong this time? Why did it always end up like this, why was it always this way?

Weak and alone and evil, with murderers knocking at his door.

He was a poor excuse for a father just like he had been a poor excuse of a son. He was no Overlord, he was pathetic. Doomed to fail over and over and over.

People would always betray him. Always alone. Always hurt. Always hunted.

The prey masquerading as a hunter.

The ache in his chest intensified, the exhausted muscles defying logic and convulsing in a strange, impossible manner. Throbbing right down to his fingertips without the aid of a beating heart. Like the blood was trying to escape him. Filling his eyes and nose and looking for little holes in his fingers to get out.

Alastor wanted it out. He wanted it out of his head. He was helping it get out. Get all out. He was doing good.

The little raindrops of blood continued and the stirring of the soup went on, reminding him of better times. Cooking with his mother, going on walks in the rain…

His hand slipped as another wave of pressure pushed the air out of his lungs, making him weep and cower under the immense weight on his shoulders. The soup had been spilled. He had ruined it. He had ruined everything. _He always ruined everything_.

His back couldn’t support him anymore. It had gotten too heavy. He was going to break like a little toothpick carrying a giant rock. Hearing the same cracking sound of wood breaking into itself and splinters sticking out.

Oh god, it hurt. He didn’t want to think. He didn’t want to be there. It wasn’t healing,_ it wasn’t healing._

Was he dying?

Alastor gasped but every breath made him lungs jump and sting and it made him choke on every breath like it was his last.

Something was very wrong.

He could _hear _himself breathing.

It had gotten quiet.

It was dark, say for the blinding light coming from the keyhole. The dim lighting made the cramped space around Alastor even more confusing and unsettling, invisible objects poking into him at odd angles.

There wasn’t enough space to move away, since everything was so cramped, but all in all this was a very good alternative to being outside.

Two lines of darkness were visible under the door. They turned into one as whoever was outside sat down.

Another wave of pain flared up in his chest and Alastor curled so far into himself that his nose was almost touching the ground. Please no more talking. He couldn’t take it. So loud. His head was already so loud.

_“Murderer!”_

_“Killer!”_

_“Disgrace!”_

Disgraces didn’t live long. They would find him. They would hurt him. Just like his father.

It hurt. It hurt to think about.

“Alastor… it’s me, Angel.”

Air returned to his lungs but it stung like a thousand needle, making him wince at the impact.

“Everybody else left. I made them leave. We’re alone.”

Another breath, it felt like his lungs were full of hay.

“I can hear that you’re having trouble breathing. I’m going to help you with that, alright?”

Alastor choked out a laugh. Angel sounded like an anxious Hunter cornering an injured animal. Predatory and _pathetic_.

“Hey, I’m trying to help, asshole.” Angel huffed and now _this_, this was the Angel he was used to. “I’m here for you and if you’ll let me I’d like to get in and make sure you’re ok.”

_‘To make sure you’re ok’_

If Alastor could breathe he would have mocked it. Disgusting. Pathetic.

Horrible. _Horrible._ Why wasn’t he ok?

“I’m going to open this door. I’m going to get inside and close it again and then I’m going to sit next to you and help. I’m not going to touch you. I’m just going to be there. Is that alright?”

_He wasn’t ok._

The handle jiggled and screeched horribly. It opened and Alastor weakly pushed it back shut. It was too bright. He couldn’t breathe.

There was more pressure against the door now, it was being pushed open, Alastor shut his eyes.

There was light. A lot of light. Too much.

But it went away again.

Alastor didn’t open his eyes.

“I want you to copy my breathing.” Angel whispered and it was barely audible. His breathing was much louder. He could hear the slow and regular sound of what actual breathing was _supposed to sound like_ and… and Alastor was going way too fast and way too shallow.

He tried to even his breaths out but his lungs just wouldn’t comply, it was a laborious task to even attempt to get down to something that resembled a normal pattern and it wasn’t bloody worth it but he was too tired to argue. Too tired.

Everything was wet. Everything hurt. Alastor didn’t want to think, couldn’t stop thinking over and over and over. He had ruined everything. It was all gone, all over. He was over. Everything. And it was all his fault.

He didn’t even remember what he had done anymore.

His claws itched at the burns on his skin.

It wasn’t right. It wasn’t healing. He had to get it off, get it to heal properly. Sharp nails ripped at the sensitive skin, drawing out a hiss of relief and gathering his unfocused attention away from everything and making him hear the bubbling and the tearing and pop and stir and stir and stir and-

Alastor flinched at the sudden contact. His heartbeat failing and returning once again as loud as ever, the immense heat in him disappearing for a split second until the ground under him was restored.

“_Sorry._” Angel said.

His hand was being held and… and pressed… massaged, almost. And Alastor focused on that.

Slim, cold fingers were holding onto his wrist while also gently pressing into the plush of his hand, moving from spot to spot from finger to finger and leaving every muscle just a bit less tense every time.

Alastor yearned to have that same feeling of relative ease anywhere close to his chest.

A third hand slowly crawled up his arm, gently squeezing and reassuring and Alastor choked out a sigh when it reached his back, gently rubbing and encouraging him to unfurl. To get out of this ball of pressure and pain and weird, uncanny muscle spasms that Alastor couldn’t control.

He couldn’t comply. The ball of hurt in his chest wouldn’t allow it. He was trying, trying so hard to keep it all together, keep his heart from collapsing, keeping his chest in place, keeping himself together from the heavy rock, reaching from the ceiling to his back, crushing his bones into the ground.

But Angel squeezed his hand reassuringly and it was fine.

He was dying. But he was being distracted. It wouldn’t be such a painful death now.

But it did hurt, the buzzing and convulsing and the sting in his lungs and the beat of his heart echoing in his mind, sending waves of static into his brain. He deserved this. He fucked up. Everything was wrong. Everything felt wrong. And they. The people outside they… but there was nobody outside. They couldn’t come in anymore. They couldn’t jiggle that fucking door handle. But he deserved it.

He had failed. He was being crushed by it. So heavy. What was it? He had failed. It was all wrong. All just completely off. But nobody was trying to kill him. The door was slightly open. No good. But nobody came. Nobody came. He had messed up but nothing was happening.

Why.

Why was he feeling this way.

Alastor worked on his breathing.

Why was this happening? He was so tired. His heart felt like it was skipping beats, too exhausted to go on.

He had miscalculated. It had been true. His arm was… it was burnt. Niffty was gone. All wrong. All true. It hurt. He had caused this. It was his fault. But he could think now. Think, actual, complete sentences.

He wouldn’t die here. It wasn’t as bad as he kept telling himself. He could recover. But what was this? What was happening to him?

Then it snapped. The muscles in his chest tore or relaxed or whatever, it was gone.

Alastor sighed in relief, finally taking in a halfway deep breathe and letting his body roll on its side and unfold a bit to get the pressure off his shoulders.

He relaxed his brows that he hadn’t even noticed were cruelly furrowed. Everything twitched. Everything hurt.

It was over.

“_What was that?”_ Alastor croaked.

“Panic attack, I think.” Angel said, brushing the wet hair out of Alastor’s face. “Sorry for touching you. You just… you scared me.”

Alastor giggled out a noise that sounded more like a malfunction than a laugh but Angel smiled nonetheless.

It was over.

Alastor closed his eyes, sighing deeply and enjoying the sensation. Another deep breath. another. And just like that, the Radio Demon had fallen asleep.

Angel looked at the sleeping body lying at his feet and gently dug his fingers into the Radio Demon’s hair. The smile on Angel's face had disappeared.

That was a thought one.

Angel knew how panic attacks worked. More were likely to occur, even if he wanted to believe that this was a one-time thing. This. This was exactly why he had come here. To Hazbin Hotel. To this… family. Why he wanted to get away from Hell.

And now it was happening to Alastor.

It was happening to _a friend_.

Angel nudged his hand under Alastor’s back and lifted him up in a bridal carry, leaning Alastor’s head against his neck. God this idiot was _tall_. He was so lucky to have so many hands. He rested one on Alastor’s forehead, shielding him from the bright lights waiting outside.

The Radio Demon was breathing softly, leaning easily against the other. He looked so calm. Like nothing had even happened at all. Angel must have lost his mind because Alastor looked almost happy.

He sucked in a deep breath and opened the door.


	15. Please Stand By

Alastor woke up and immediately regretted it.

Every joint hurt, his head was buzzing and there was the tell-tale heaviness that he felt whenever he pushed himself _way _too far. Who had he deemed ‘evil enough’ to madly pursue like a bloodhound?

Ah. _Himself._ That’s right.

It was best to just stop complaining and start working on some sort of solution, he decided. He remembered skipping a few meals. Or maybe he skipped all, hard to tell and unimportant at this point. He should just get some food into his system before dizziness could be added to his lengthy list of symptoms.

Alastor sat up with a groan, removed the blankets and stopped, temporarily stunned by the amount of pink. Either somebody had pulled a very cruel prank on his room or he wasn’t at all where he thought he was.

He rubbed at his eyes and forced himself to focus. Pink blankets, pink pillows combined with the pink striped wall paper was just overkill… Alastor wasn’t really one to talk fashion but he could feel his retinas burning with the amount of femininity on display here.

Make up products cluttered the nightstand and the overly decorated table right next to it. He could see wigs on display and strange objects placed randomly in front the enormous make-up mirror. There were enough lightbulbs on it to light up all of Las Vegas.

If the parfum hadn’t given it away, the sex toys had.

This was _Angels room_.

Alastor took in a steadying breath._ There were several things to take in here._

He closed his eyes and tried to keep his thoughts away from the fact that he was currently in Angels bed, where _unspeakable things had been done alone and with total strangers_. His head swam with disgust but the strangled feeling seemed to ebb away slowly, which was a relief.

It didn’t smell of cedar here… Angel had… he had saved him, in a sense. For no reason.

And now he was in his room. Angel had taken him to his own room, rather than Alastor’s. Why?

No point in speculating.

Alastor attempted to get up and was immediately hit by a wave of dizziness. _So much for keeping it off the list. _He staggered and caught himself on the table, knocking some of the clutters over, and forced himself to stand still until his senses returned.

He was touching something _round_. He promised himself that it was surely lipstick and blinked a few more times to clear his vision.

This was bad.

It was rather dangerous being weakened like this in _Hell_. He would have to put on quite an act if he wanted nobody to notice. It would be challenging to say the least.

A thought came to mind.

It was so bizarre and manic that it took Alastor a long moment to even identify it as an actual thought and not some kind of static error.

‘You could just **not**.’ The thought said. ‘You could just **stay here**. Wait for Angel to return and-‘

Alastor shook his head in total shock, which just jumbled up his newly organized sense of balance. He could hear his dials being reset, his head desperately trying to find the right channel. What was he thinking? He almost laughed. Thought like this they were… old. Reminiscent of… better times. _Debatably._

Had it really been so long since he trusted anyone? With something _this small?_

Alastor tried to push the thought under. Tried to straighten himself and at least try and look his normal self. He smiled widely and looked in the mirror.

He looked exhausted. His eyes dull and lifeless, his smile forced and his hair stood at impossible angles; shaped with blood and sweat and blow-dried by sleeping on it funny.

Alastor felt vaguely bad for his previous judgment. Maybe the bed wasn’t that dirty after all, compared to him.

After what had happened yesterday… and with him looking like _this_, would anyone really let him go about his day scot-free?

Something nudged his leg, pulling Alastor’s attention downwards. A little baby pig looked up at him, probably straining its neck in the process, with big black eyes.

“Oh, why, hello there!” he said, catching it before it could escape. The little pig wiggled and squeaked; startled. “_And who might you be?_”

* * *

Vaggie did her very best to keep her expression blank as she and Charlie patrolled the corridors. Breakfast had just ended and with Niffty gone, it was much more likely that some kind of fight would break out.

Charlie squeezed her girlfriends’ hand and Vaggie’s face flushed as she tried once more to keep herself together. Somehow, Charlie always knew when she felt like crap. And somehow Charlie always managed to bring those feelings to the surface.

“I’m worried.” Vaggie said.

“For Angel?” Charlie asked. “Are you worried Al will do something?”

“I don’t know. I guess I’m… I think I might be worried about Alastor.”

“Aww!” Charlie gave her a playful punch on the shoulder. “And here I thought you hated him times infinity plus one!”

Vaggie huffed and glared at some passing by patrons. “He’s our sponsor.” She reasoned. “It would be bad for us if something happened to him, you know?”

“Angel is taking really good care of him though.”

“_Taking really good care of the Radio Demon, yeah_.” Vaggie mocked. “I don’t trust Angel, he’s planning something.”

“Don’t think so.” Charlie mused. “I saw his face when he was carrying Alastor back to his room-“

“Back to HIS room! He is carrying his victim right into the spider’s den, Charlie!”

“He looked so fussed.”

“He almost missed breakfast, he’s acting _weird_.”

“You’re right about that. Angel had been acting particularly protective lately. I think it’s kind of adorable seeing him care so much about someone, even if it’s not mutual…”

“What in the world are you talking about?!”

“I think they might love each other.” Vaggie stared. “But I’m only five percent sure.” Charlie added.

Vaggie barked out a laugh. “You were only five percent sure that _I liked you_.”

“And look how that turned out.” Charlie gave Vaggie’s hand another squeeze and that finally forced a smile to spread on her lips.

“Oh, shut up. We have to go check on them some time.”

“Without knocking.” Charlie reminded. “Angel said Alastor is still asleep.”

“Without knocking.” Vaggie agreed. She sucked in a breath in hopes that it would make the blush on her face disappear. _It didn’t._

* * *

The Radio Demon had folded his legs neatly beside him, to level with the miniature pig.

“Fat Nuggets?” Alastor mused, looking at the collar. “What kind of cruel sadistic person would name their pig that?”

Fat nuggets oinked in cheerful approval.

Alastor lifted it into the air.

“Tell me, Nugget. Is your owner really who I think he is? Or is he a big old meanie who is trying to _tangle me in a web of lies U̴__͐͌͝__̗̹̤̳N̵̚__͝__̤̦TIL ̴̢̛̦̤̫̪̺̇I̴̎__͔__ ̵̢̣̈̑̽̃́̄̈́__͕__̺B̴__͗__̻̋̈́̆__͖͜__R̶̢̛̿̇̂̓̆̒E̷__̓__̝̖̜̍A̶̪̱̣̒̎__͖__̤̘̯K̵̈̚̕__͖__̧̡̘̬̝̮?_” he booped its nose. “Because I don’t break easily and I wouldn’t want Angel to _waste his time_.”

Nuggets wasn’t startled by glowing eyes and radio static. Clearly, Nuggets had seen scarier shit. Alastor laughed at the thought.

“Am I misunderstanding something?” he asked genuinely, quietly, while helping the pig into a headstand. Fat nuggets oinked happily. “I seem to be doing that a lot lately. I would hate for it to become an issue.”

Niffty… wasn’t dead. She was just… gone.

Charlie hadn’t lied, Vaggie had been a prick but that was acceptable.

Angel… _Angel… had been…_

The pig offered no answers. 

“What are the odds of someone in Hell being actually nice? Realistically, I mean. But, ah, I suppose we are in the Happy Hotel… Odds might be higher here.”

There was a clicking sound and the door opened.

_No point in speculating._

When Angel entered, he was greeted by the sight of an awake Radio Demon sitting on the floor, helping his baby pig dance on his hind-legs.

One of Alastor’s ears flicked up in acknowledgment.

“What a dashing fellow he is.” Alastor commented, letting go of the pig. “You should have told me about him! I own a hat that is just his size-“

Two pair of arms were immediately wrapped around him and Alastor froze. Radio static flickered and Angel buried his face in Alastor’s shoulder as the latter slowly realized that this was, in fact, not an attack.

“Good to have you back.” Angel said. “I was _worried._”

The static died out and Alastor recovered, somewhat.

“Oh, you shouldn’t have.” he said, doing a rather poor job at complying. His arms, all length and no substance… they were made for slicing not for… not for… this. Hugging. It was… a strange warm sensation. It felt old. It felt sentimental it felt… safe. He felt **safe.**

“Can’t help it.” Angel said. “Never seen you like that before. Has that ever happened before?”

A delicate thumb soothed his shoulder. “Ah…” Alastor stuttered. “I suppose it might have… once.”

It wasn’t a very good memory but the arms wrapped around him kept him grounded.

This touch…

It was nothing like yesterday. There was no real reason for it. He wasn’t hurt, he wasn’t dying, he wasn’t holding somebody up by the throat and watching them try and hold onto him as they ran out of oxygen. No! This was Absolutely _Unnecessary_ and _Alastor didn’t understand it in the slightest_…

“You don’t have to tell me.” Angel said. “But I’ll be there if it happens again.”

Why…? He didn’t get it. He didn’t understand. It was unnecessary. He melted into the touch.

Alastor would rather die than let go first.


	16. Holy Shit!

A particularly unsettling thought forced its way out of his lips. “Angel, did you have any sinful intentions in bringing me here?”

He could feel Angel tense up for a moment, right before a roar of laughter erupted on his shoulder. “PF-HA! YOU DIRTY PERVERT! What are you smoking?!” Angel laughed himself dry before he continued. “Nah. I thought you’d kill me if I even changed up your outfit. Might have been a mistake. You were absolutely drenched before and now you’re pretty warm, might be a fever…”

Alastor listened without really hearing much of it. His thought stopped swirling once a familiar hand was placed on his forehead.

“Oh, you’ll be fine.” Angel said and there was some relief in his expression. “After what you’ve been through this is expected. Honestly, you look and sound much better than I expected. You’ll be back to health in no time, dear!”

Talented fingers brushed his hair back into shape, avoiding his antlers, drawing sweet patterns into his skull. Angel didn’t care that it was _him_ he was touching. Or maybe he did. Maybe…

“You care about me.” Alastor realized. “Goodness, do you really, actually…” his throat had dried up.

Angel giggled. “Is that an arms-length way of saying Love?”

“Ah, yes, you have to forgive me. Ahem.” And Angel braced himself without even knowing why. “Goodness! Do you really feel a homosexual attraction-“

Angel was already howling in laughter.

“-a homosexual attraction towards me, Angel?” Alastor said.

“My god Al!” Angel laughed.

“Come now, do tell.”

Angels laughter gave way to pure joy. “Yeah man!” his smile was radiant. “You’re dangerous and fun and you hate me! I like that in a man!”

_“Hate you?”_

“Not to mention the suit. The suit and the manners, you know? And the hair; those ear fluffs, right? Killer. Love them.”

Said ear fluffs sank slightly in embarrassment. “You do?”

“Yeah!” Angel smiled wholeheartedly. “Always did. It’s why I’m always around. I know you hate it but it’s always fun hanging out with you. Makes me happy. Can’t believe you never noticed.”

Alastor seemed speechless. The pair of arms let go of him. “Anyway, don’t worry about it. You don’t have to like me. I’ll take care of you regardless, if you’ll let me. You went through a lot yesterday.”

“I-I suppose I did…” Alastor said. Today was turning out to be a lot as well.

“Come on.” Angel got up and extended a hand to help Alastor up too. “I’ll walk you back to your room. You take a shower and then we go eat.”

_Well that was poorly worded._

Explaining the things in order like this… like he wasn’t explaining them to a toddler. _Like yesterday_. It was these… these little disgusting things Angel did that really got under his skin and down into his veins and into his stone-cold _dead _heart.

Worrying and keeping him in his room like some distraught lover… This… this care.

No, leaving things like this just wouldn’t do. Angel simply had to learn that there were _consequences to his actions_.

Alastor grabbed the offered hand by the wrist and pulled himself up and into a kiss.

* * *

Charlie’s hand hovered over the door.

“It would be rude to enter without knocking.” She whined.

Vaggie rolled her eye before shooing her girlfriend away and taking her place in front of the door. She took in a deep breath, mentally preparing herself for potential Angel stuff. She looked through the keyhole… and nearly collapsed.

“Vaggie!” Charlie caught her in her arms and looked down at her, perplexed when Vaggie’s stunned expression turned into a strange smile.

“Five percent.” She said.

“No fucking way.” Charlie said.

* * *

Angel traced his tongue up Alastor’s razor-sharp teeth before going in for round two. It really felt like a bite more than a kiss and Alastor must have never ever done this before but by the dark lord, it felt good. It felt right. Actually right. And Angel didn’t feel the need to go all-in and lick and grope and give the guy his money’s worth because… because it was Alastor.

Angel purred when Al shoved him against a wall.

“My my…” he whispered before gently lifting up Alastor’s chin. “Oh! Oh, you’re dizzy, that’s why you pushed me! Oh!”

Alastor laughed at that and just leaned further into the other, their noses brushing against each other slightly. He sighed and Angel steadied him with his arms.

There was a beat of comfortable silence and warmth.

“Your face is as red as the rest of you.” Angel said.

“Ah, you have finally unlocked my true form!” Alastor said. Angel raised an eyebrow. “A stoplight!”

“For fucks sake Al! Terrible dad-joke!” but Angel still laughed much to Alastor’s amusement.

There was a knock at the door and Angel stopped laughing. He furrowed his brows in confusion and Alastor took this as his cue to get off of the other, instead moving beside Angel and leaning against the wall. He was too tired for this…

“Should I open it?” Angel asked. “It’s probably-“

“Charlie?”

“Yeah.”

Alastor hummed. It wasn’t a very confident sound.

“I’m not planning on leaving you alone with those gals anytime soon, if that helps.” Angel shrugged easily. “I could even tickle Vaggie if she tries to spear you.”

Alastor chuckled. “Right… yes… Please open the door.”

“Yes sir!”

Angel cat-walked to the door and stopped. He posed and blew a kiss at Alastor before even touching the doorknob, Alastor simply shook his head and laughed.

Angel opened the door and…

Immediately he was shoved aside and into the ground.

A camera was pointed at Alastor’s unphased smile as Brock hissed at him.

“YOU DIDN’T TELL US JACK SHIT!” he spit into Angel's carpet and Alastor’s smile flickered. “You said that all we had to do was find Charlie and interview her! You said she was pulling some bullcrap that YOU wanted to expose! I come here, do my job and I get burned!” and he pointed at the scar on his face, the spiral pattern oh, so familiar.

Alastor nodded politely before digging his claws into Brock’s eye socket and holding on tight. “Did you interview Charlie?” he asked, almost inaudible over Brock’s desperate screeching. His face was oozing liquid.

“NO! NO, WE DIDN’T!”

“I see no reason to apologize for your burns, then.” Alastor said smugly, finally letting go.

Brock let out a broken sob and gathered himself on the floor as his two teammates stepped back. _They had stepped back!_ Weren’t they a team?? Brock looked at them, his eyeball barely in place. Wasn’t he their leader?!

“Was there anything else you wanted to tell me, Brock?” Alastor asked.

“N-no sir…”

“Well then.” Alastor said and straightened. If he flinched at the motion, nobody noticed. “I’m going to as you all to leave this establishment now. Without your equipment. I’m not letting _any of this footage _leave this building.”

The trio stared but nobody dared to protest. Brock got up and cursed something under his breathe as he left the room. The other two followed.

“It was lovely working with you!” Alastor said, just to rub salt to injury. “See you all next time!”

And then something in his eyes flickered. Angel closed the door.

Alastor felt his knees give in and managed to fall into a sitting position rather than just completely collapse. Angel was by his side in an instant.

“Yeesh, you ok?” Angel asked, offering Alastor a shoulder to lean on. The Radio Demon was in no position to refuse.

“Why won’t people just _give me a break_?” Alastor winces at the cracking sound his back made when he leaned into Angel. Tired joints. So tired.

“My, my, never heard you whine before.” Angel joked, nudging Alastor with all four hands. The demon seemed slightly ticklish, _what a treat_.

“It’s not whining.” Alastor claimed, refusing to defend himself from the onslaught of pokes. “It’s just a professionally worded complaint that should be delivered to the higher ups.”

“Right.”

“Yes.”

“Are you stalling because you’ve fallen and you can’t get up?”

Alastor smiled giving into the manic thoughts. “Let’s stay here for a bit.”

* * *

“Well, that was a waste of time, wasn’t it?” Blue chirped.

“No, not really.” Brick smiled to himself. “I already sent the best footage to Killjoy privately. I wanted her to see, you know?”

“Why?”

“Well, to make me famous, obviously.” Brock said, wiping away any stray tears from his eye.

“Is that really worth getting into Alastor’s kill-list?”

“Ok, probably not but… I don’t know. Just, the thought of Hell finding out about this. Everyone seeing what a bunch of crazy women have accomplished… I think Niffty would have wanted it.” Brock said.

“You ok Boss?”

“OH, DON’T FUCKING ‘_BOSS_’ ME! I WASN’T FUCKING OK WHEN ALASTOR GRABBED ME BY MY FUCKING EYE!” The three passed through a few alleyways, avoiding the usual battles on the main streets and the weird sexual favours they encountered.

Brock wasn’t entirely unphased by what he had seen at the hotel. 

He wondered how Hell would change once they... knew. _He_ probably wouldn’t change one bit. He had a life here. He fit in. There wasn’t anyone in heaven he wanted to see, quite the opposite, actually.

For a strange moment Brock felt happy to be in Hell, with his crew. How could he not? They were about to get a hefty reward and recognition for their efforts! Killjoy would HAVE to pay them the regular now which would mean NO MORE room sharing and better food and prostitutes and-

There was a sound, like a distant punch and Blue fell from the sky. Brock turned, confused by what had just happened. On the ground he found his crewmate, his friend, with his head _split open._

There was another sound to his left and Blake took a knee.

“Run Boss.”

He was hit in the shoulder, no, in the neck. Black blood was shooting out of him, despite his attempts to keep it inside. Brock didn’t even register his words, kneeling to help.

There was a sound and Brock turned. He saw a glimmer. The shine reflecting off of the assassin’s sniper.

She shot him right in the eye, killing him instantly.

She didn’t shoot again, silently watching Blake through her scope as he bled out. 

When she was sure he was dead, she sat up, looking down at the scene from the rooftops.

She had missed his head.

_How embarrassing._

She would dispose of the bodies herself.

Her small form was barely visible as she climbed down from the rooftops, her knife barely made any noise as it cut out the precious bullets. Holy. She couldn’t waste them.

Her gloved finger traced the spiral burns around their arms and face. 

Strange. _Holy._

There was something here she hadn’t been told.

_Typical._

“Niffty would have wanted it.” she repeated. It wasn’t her voice; it was a recording. “Niffty... would have wanted it...?”


	17. ERROR: Heterosexuality Not Found

Angel Dust lit the colourful candles around the bathtub while Alastor did his very best to look as uncomfortable as one could possibly look sitting in a bathtub covered by a fuckton of bubbles.

They were in Angels bathroom, which was clearly unnerving to the radio demon and Angel was kneeling outside of the tub but still within arms reach of him and Alastor looked and felt so very defenceless. He stared unblinkingly at the other, shrinking further into himself every time the spider demon got anywhere even remotely close to him. Clearly, Alastor was determined to become one with the bubbles.

“This is fine.” Angel said, mostly to himself. “Nice, right? They are rose flavoured.” He waved his hands at the candles, Alastor sank. “Uh, no, sorry, not flavour, um, scented, you know?”

Alastor’s ears had been lowered to the point of where they were just a part of his hairline now. He was still smiling despite everything and… and Angel wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or not but it was, in fact, a thing and… oh, dear Lucifer, he should just leave.

“I’m sorry.” He said. “I just… I’m not afraid that you’ll drown or anything but, um. I mean, this _should_ be fine, right? After all, you like me and I’ve seen naked men more times than I’ve fired automatic machine gun ammo.” He finger gunned the bubbles and made his hand vibrate like an actual machine gun. Then the prickled down the rain of bullets by wiggling his fingers.

It was a lot of ammo.

Alastor looked petrified.

The spider sighed and deflated on the edge of the bathtub, resting his head on his pairs of arms. Alastor hadn’t thrown him out of the room but Angel was clearly dancing at the edge of things that Alastor was comfortable with. The spider demon sighed once again and felt Alastor watch him very closely as he removed his arms from the tub and moved to sit down, a few feet away from the tub, on the bathroom tiles. He turned his back to Alastor.

“Yo! Is this better?” it was a genuine question. Angel heard some splashing before a towel was gently draped over him. “Uh….” And then another. He didn’t move, didn’t throw the towels off. It was awkward but he just sat there and waited.

“I don’t mean to offend.” Alastor said, finally. “As men usually say; it’s not you, it’s me.”

Angle laughed at that. “Ha! Nonsense, it was my idea to get you stripped and wet.”

“_Never say that again_.”

“But I mean it!” Angel insisted, finally getting comfortable on the floor. “I go too fast, I know that.”

“I’m sure most citizens of Hell would prefer it that way.” Alastor said. Angel could hear him shuffling through his shampoo selection. By the sound of the cap, he had chosen the strawberry one. “But I think we both know that I don’t like that sort of thing.”

“But why though?” Angel said. And regretted. He sounded too disappointed.

Alastor didn’t sound offended, simply humming. “Sex is not my cup of tea.”

“Really??”

“Yes.”

Angel contemplated this. There was a lot to unpack here and on top of that, most of the package was wired and booby-trapped. Angel settled on a very simple question. “Bad experience or choice?”

“The latter.”

There was no hesitation. It was an easy question.

Angel dust, under his two pink towels, on the bathroom floor, contemplated existence for a moment. Alastor didn’t like sex. Somebody that he knew, who was all in all very human in most ways had decided to just… ignore his basic programming to reproduce and-

Angel could hear him fumbling with the nylon sponge. The shampoo bottle was opened up once again, it shouldn’t be used for as body-wash but Alastor was clearly too into the smell to care.

He was too gay for this shit…

Well, the more Angel thought about it, being gay was also basically ignoring the ‘basic programming to reproduce’ but still… Sex was such a big part of his life. It was more than just a hobby at this point, it was what he did for a living! It was just what he did!

And Alastor… By the sound of things, he had gotten the nylon bath sponge stuck somewhere…

There was a synthetic tearing sound.

“Did you rip it?”

“The antlers survived!”

“Ah, that’s good then.” Angel giggled.

“I’m _sorry_.” Alastor said and it sounded like there was a little bit more behind it than just cheap bathroom supplies.

“_Don’t be_.” This was a very bizarre situation but Angel had chosen this. Very willingly, in fact. _In fact_, Angel had eagerly signed up for this ship-wagon and now he was just along for the ride, pleasantly looking out the window, feeling the steady bumps and taking things as they come.

And he wasn’t quite sure why. There was no inherent logic behind why kissing Alastor had felt so different from kissing a million other boys. There was no science to why he felt so at ease in his presence. He couldn’t explain to himself why he let himself care so deeply about this particular flavour of bad boy, no, scent of bad boy.

One of the towels was removed from his head.

Why was he so calm? Why wasn’t he all over his lover, putting on the act of the sex-driven masochist like he usually did?

Why was he letting himself be weak and worried around him?

It was rather dangerous to care so much about somebody in _Hell_. Care so openly, without even hiding it under a nonchalant act. Emotions could be manipulated so easily, by Alastor or by worse.

“Now,” The radio demon said pulling Angel out of his thoughts. “don’t look just yet.”

It was certainly tempting. _Alastor _was tempting. Surely, this relationship was too weird to not-result in a train-wreck.

“Alright, you can look now.” Alastor said, removing the second towel and placing it back in it’s place.

He wasn’t wearing his jacket for once, having put on just a red shirt for now. He has a gorgeous back, Angel thought. No gloves either, the spirals burnt into his skin still clearly visible… Then his attention was drawn to something lower down.

“Nice tail.” Angel commented.

Alastor flinched. “Excuse you?!”

“No, I mean your actual-“

“_Excuse you?!_”

“Excuse me.” Angel laughed. “But it’s so cute and fluffy and I didn’t even know you had a-“

“I don’t.” Alastor said with a shrug. “Not as far as all of Hell knows.”

“Oh, you certainly don’t.” Angel agreed. “I’m just that one crazy fellow that imagined things.”

“Exactly.”

And then the two looked at each other and tried not to laugh.

There was a brief moment when Angel allowed himself to look unsexy on the ground and Alastor allowed his ears to droop as if he was alone and then, Alastor offered Angel his hand and they sobered up, in a sense.

“Now then,” Alastor said, reclaiming his usual confidence. “Could I invite you to some lunch?”


	18. Empathy-Deficient

“You know,” Vaggie said, staring stupidly at the sky. It was becoming a habit for her and Charlie to escape the stress of running a hotel by fucking off to the roof of the first floor and just eyeing the dark red void of the sky… for lunch. Like a picnic. “when you first told me, you wanted to build a happy hotel I thought you were a sadistic psychopath.”

Charlie laughed at that.

“No, I mean it! I mean, the daughter of Lucifer boasting about her knowledge in psychology? Talking about her passion to rehabilitate people? Building a hotel? I imagined Jigsaw, you know?”

Charlie giggled. “Yeah. Well, I guess my father thought so too for a long time. I think everybody thought I was just kidding, you know? But when it started to sink in that I was serious people started freaking out.”

“Oh, you don’t have to remind me. Let me just-“ and Vaggie picked Charlie up and started carrying her to nowhere. “-save your ass, princess!”

Charlie was giggling like a schoolgirl. “You’re such a dumbass! You could have gotten killed ten times over!”

“Nah, nobody kills me, they don’t have the guts.” Vaggie boasted, with zero actual self-confidence. “They’re all too scared of my incredibly dangerous and totally deadly spears.”

“Your spears **are** very scary.”

“They are. They’re supposed to be.” Vaggie frowned. “I’m not, so the spear has to be scary.”

Charlie stroked his girlfriends cheek from her comfortable bridal position.

“I’m full of shit, Charlie. Anxiety would kill Alastor before I ever could.”

Charlie pulled herself up and kissed those trembling lips, soothing Vaggie’s hair and letting her dangling legs find their way back to the ground.

“You’re the best girlfriend I could have ever asked for. You know that, right?” Vaggie giggled at that but she didn’t believe it at all. “You try… so hard. Nobody tries so hard to make me happy but you. I love you Vaggie...”

“The Third Circle of Hell actually offers a multitude of vegan food options, did you know that? It’s not all torture and cannibalism there, no sir! They also offer a variety of vegetable and-

**Charlie!**”

Now that the two girls were standing up and not just laying on the floor like stoned corpses, they were very visible from the Hotels entranceway. They turned to see Alastor and Angel looking up at them.

“Oh dear dark father, he spotted us.” Charlie mumbled.

“He is still evil.” Vaggie whispered, mostly to herself. “I don’t care if the two of them kiss now they got to be still evil. Maybe Angel is in on it too now, maybe they are both trying to destroy the hotel now!”

“Ughhh, I bet he’s going to come up here _all the time now that he knows this spot exists_. I hate this, I hate this…” Charlie hissed.

This was precisely why they had come to the roof. They were both way too fucking stressed out for any potential denial-fuelled shenanigans.

“We are all doomed.” Vaggie groaned.

“Charlie? I-em…” Alastor looked at Angel and then back up, clearly at a loss. “Do you think I might have interrupted something important?”

“Eh, probably.” Angel shrugged.

“We should go up there.” Alastor decided. Angel laughed at that.

“I can jump but I doubt you could pull that off. Not in that suit.”

Alastor brushed down his suit, feigning being offended. “If you were a true spider man you could just lasso us both up there… but I guess not in _that_suit.”

“Oh, shut the fuck up.” Angel laughed, jumping up to the ‘Happy Hotel’ logo over the entrance and pulling Alastor up. He climbed up further but when he reached down, he noticed Alastor had already teleported up.

“Charlie!” the Radio Demon said once more and Charlie could really feel her dreams of a quiet afternoon falling and shattering into a million pieces on the floor. There was a distinct smell of strawberry in the air and for some reason, it gave Charlie the chills.

“_Hey _Alastor.” She said. _Please don’t_, she thought. _Just, whatever it is, don’t._

Alastor cleared his throat. “You were right!” He said, bluntly. “About redemption. You were right and I wanted to apologize for the misunderstanding.”

It was so quiet that Charlie could swear she heard Vaggie’s jaw drop.

“I was right?” she asked.

Alastor laughed wholeheartedly. “Am I not coming through to you?” he tapped his microphone. “Hello? Testing, testing!”

The microphone did not respond. Alastor’s live show had been completely silent for quite some time now. No advertisements. No updates. No warning, no announcement, no nothing. Just silence and static.

Charlie took a moment to comb through his words.

‘_Apologize for the misunderstanding_’, of course, Alastor wasn’t actually _sorry._ He was simply and distantly _apologizing for the misunderstanding_.

He was admitting wrongdoing, he knew he had been wrong to attack the hotel and try and ruin Charlie’s life by exposing her lies on the news; he just didn’t care enough about anyone involved to feel bad about it.

Classic Alastor. It was as if nothing had ever changed.

Or had it?

“I’m glad we see eye to eye now.” Charlie said, planning out an innocent psychological analysis. “And believe me when I say, I wasn’t right. None of us were sure about redemption until it happened.”

“Ah, but I was the last to catch on! How old-fashioned of me…”

“I see. So… now that you understand… will you keep supporting our cause?” and Alastor actually seemed caught off-guard. He considered it, briefly glancing over to Angel who smirked.

“A-I… I suppose the entertainment value of this establishment isn’t entirely lost just because of this minor revelation.” Alastor said and Charlie knew. She knew everything. “Watching demons struggle to obtain something that really is achievable, might be even _more_ satisfying, actually!” Alastor claimed. “Those who would fail to do even that could be labelled the ultimate failures. The cream of the crust, if you will. The worst of the worst.”

“I see!” Charlie said.

“Speaking of the worst of the worst! I have taken a particular liking to your biggest failure.” Alastor said smugly, eyeing Angel Dust. “I would like to borrow him for the day. Watching them struggle in person is such a joy!”

Charlie smiled wholeheartedly. “Right, he’s yours, I get it.”

Vaggie laughed.

“Pardon?”

“I think Angel is a prime example to what our hotel can do for people.” Charlie boasted. “_The cream of the crust_, indeed!”

“By that she means sexy as fuck.” Angel explained, helpfully. “Probably.”

“We’re leaving.” Alastor said, taking Angel's hand and jumping off the roof. He caught himself on his feel perfectly before catching the spider as well. “Lovely chat, Charlie! Let’s continue it when I have an _endless amount of time_!”

Charlie grinned to like a mad scientist as she watched the two go.

“The moment he humanizes our patrons,” Charlie explained. “the moment he starts seeing US as people… is the moment when I can finally start rehabilitating him. I think Angel will be a good influence.”

“You think Angel will be a good influence.” Vaggie said, giving into the feeling of imminent doom. “Ok, got it.”


	19. Rain, Good Food and You

Angel wasn’t exactly _familiar_ with the third circle of Hell.

He was the kind of demon who stuck to his pimp, in a metaphorical sense. Barely ever stepping outside of the Second circle, where he felt at home with the perfume overloaded air and his succubi sisters.

Leaving his comfort zone usually felt like leaving behind a warm bed and company for the sake of the usual, boring hellish nonsense, littered with pain and chaos and weird nobodies who just had never even heard of the true lord and saviour, the flying spaghetti monster.

Angel didn’t like it. It made him feel dirty in a filthy kind of way. Without the fiery glow of spotlights pointing at him, he felt quite unimportant and disposable. Just another demon scum in an ocean full of nobodies.

But how could he ever pass up on some delicious gluttony?

It was always raining in the third circle and although Angel wasn’t complaining about being ‘forced’ to share an umbrella with Alastor, he couldn’t imagine what kind of person would tolerate this weather just for the food. He also couldn’t help but notice quite a few eyes looking at them.

At first, it was only glances shot from under an umbrella. Secret. Almost unnoticeable.

“I believe you've never tried the food here!” Alastor mused, mistaking the reason behind Angel’s sudden paranoia. “I assure you, it’s delightful.”

“Oh, so am I~” Angel teased, his usual attitude returning instantly.

Alastor rolled his eyes. “if it isn’t your cup of tea,” he said, tilting his head thoughtfully. “I suppose there is a different place where I can drop you off. I found it by accident. They do _unspeakable things_ with chocolate.”

Angel furrowed his brow for a moment before barking out a laugh. “I think I’m starting to like this place!” Angel confessed.

Although, as interesting as food play in the third circle of hell sounded, he wasn’t too keen on the idea of letting Alastor out of his sight just yet. He didn’t doubt Alastor’s capabilities, if anything Alastor had proven himself to be quite sturdy, considering all the recent events. No, it was never real _actual danger_ that Angel tried to protect Alastor from.

_He smells of Strawberry_, Angel reasoned. _Can’t let a strawberry out of sight in a cooking district!_

Especially not with people staring at them with that hungry gaze. A gay couple stopping in their tracks to stare, two others whispered to one another, even more started pointing fingers and cameras.

Angel could feel their eyes on himself. Tracing his every move, following each step, gracing his legs with attention, forcing a smile onto his lips.

How could he have forgotten? His Radio Demon was a celebrity, after all!

He wrapped himself around Alastor’s arm, ignoring the curious Alastor gave him in return.

Who the Hell said he couldn’t be in the spotlight among the masses?! Who knew that the streets could be a stage as well? That he could act like he was important, like he mattered, outside of comfort zone as well? Or, well, maybe Alastor was just a portable comfort zone, in that sense. Angel felt like they could walk to the end of the world together and never once look back.

He wondered briefly if reality always bend around the Radio Demon like this. If there had always been these curious eyes on him, no matter where he went, if he always carried this immense confidence wherever he went, if Angel had always felt so weak around him.

Was this just how the world always seemed to Alastor?

“These perverts always stare at you?” Angel asked.

Alastor barked out a laugh. “Maybe. Or maybe they think we look good together!”

Angel hadn’t even considered that.

“Should I act like we’re just acquaintances?” he whispered.

“I was actually going to suggest the opposite!” Alastor said, confusing Angel endlessly. “I doubt any rational demon would believe it if they heard that we admitted to genuinely loving each other. If we acted genuinely, it’s inevitable that they would just brush it off as two charmers trying to manipulate each other!”

There were sparkles in Angel's eyes.

“But no kissing.” Alastor said, if only to put a cap on the explosive concoction that was brewing within Angel. “I’d rather do that kind of thing in private.”

Angel was just short of boiling over! Being allowed to absolutely tarnish the other's reputation; Absolute boyfriend privileges! 

“Oh, Alastor~” he said, squeezing himself against the other. “Have I ever told you that you’re deceptively cunning?”

“That or I love making other people jealous.” Alastor said, smiling softly.

“Oh, you’re the worst on _so many levels_!” Angel giggled, elegantly swinging himself up to Alastor’s lips like he was his own personal pole. Alastor didn’t fight it at all, although he did look slightly amused and Angel slowly realised it was because he had been told not to kiss in public quite literally 5 seconds ago.

“What an unexpected chain of events! News flash, Angel Dust doesn’t respect other people’s boundaries!” Alastor announced loudly.

“Hey! It was an accident! Don’t spread lies about me like that!!” Angel dust said, pouting like an upset teenager.

The demons around them watched as the two disappeared into the crowd, wondering and speculating amongst each other how in the world the porn-star beauty was planning on romancing that beast without becoming his next meal.


	20. Alcoholics

With Hell’s terrible reception, it took a particularly important video a week to reach Katie Killjoy.

An entire week! So, by the time she had her long claws on the juicy info, rumours had already begun to stir. She had first heard of it from the Radio Demon, when he had asked her for a camera crew to record it officially.

“There is only so much you can convey with words, my dear.” He had said, twirling his hand dramatically. “I need demons to witness it with their eyeballs in order to believe it! And although ripping all of their eyes out and showing them that way would be fun and all, I believe camera footage would be more convenient.”

She hadn’t even laughed. Alastor was a moron. And, since she hadn’t heard from the B-Team ever since, she had assumed it was just a wild ploy to get some sort of revenge on her. That bastard had even hurt her sister.

It didn’t matter if redemption was real or not, she wouldn’t send anyone she cared about even slightly near that cocky show-off ever again! So, she hunted through her staff for any gay sacrifices she could throw into the fire

Mira Labrados had lusted for young women from behind a camera in her youth, sure, but she was old now and she had left that side of her behind ages ago. She felt very insulted when the mega-bitch who was her boss pointed a sharp finger at her and ordered her to go investigate the Happy Hotel.

Who did she think Mira was? Some kind of energetic, lust-filled young person?? Just because she had chosen to work behind cameras all her life didn’t mean she liked what she was filming OR that she was in any shape or form energetic! No, in fact, she Hated talking to people!

But it was just another job. And an easy one at that. No reason to make a big fuss about it.

Mira took the bus to wherever the Hotel was, forgetting the journey the instant she got off and looked at the building. Wow. With more stories than Mira could be bothered to count, the obnoxious arrow pointing towards itself and the big giant eyeball on top; it rose from the ground in its majestic glory like the biggest compensation for having no penis that Mira had ever seen.

She could feel her hatred for this place growing already.

Within two seconds of entering the building, her opinion was finalized. They were all these young people running about, talking to each other and texting on their phones. Mira didn’t know how to exactly talk to young people. They had this weird energy that she couldn’t really wrap her head around.

She would need a drink to prepare her for this. Thankfully, the bartender in the lobby seemed a lot more decent.

“Give me some cheap booze.” She said bluntly. “I need to be drunk to talk to people.”

“My, what a fine and elegant lady you are.” The cat demon said. There was no charm in his tone. Actually, there wasn’t anything in his tone at all. If a corpse could talk, this would be what it sounded like. Mira decided that he was compelling. “Tell you what, you leave me a tip and I’ll serve you something more expensive.”

“Are they not paying you with money or are you just the absolute worst at flirting?” Mira asked.

“They aren’t paying me with money.” The cat said. “No offence.”

“None taken.” Mira said, paying in advance. It was taken as a friendly gesture by the cat, clearly, since he opened up a bit with some hotel-gossip. Mira hadn’t really come here for this but once he started talking about the good old 50’s she was on board.

“I used to bend over backwards to be proper!” Husk said. Was that his name? It didn’t matter and so Mira had already forgotten. “Used to hide all of my addictions, it was fucking Hell is what it was. Always being quiet, always secretive, knowing that if anyone found out they would much rather screw you over than help you back up on your fucking feet! Some friends, am I right?”

Mira nodded. “My bitch of a Boss boasts about her murders like they’re badges of accomplishment. It’s like the whole world is reversed. It’s bloody stupid is what it is, if I had known Hell was this fucking chill I would have killed myself much sooner!”

Husk barked out a laugh at that, his nonchalant façade finally faltering. “Tell me about it! Here I can actually just be myself for once and people fucking hire me BECAUSE of my addictions! How fucked up is that?” he folded his arms, leaning against the counter with a sigh. “It’s pretty great.”

“There something on your mind?”

“No, it’s just… I mean, I have nothing against Hell but the people are still the worst.”

“Always have been.” Mira agreed. “Made me want to die.”

“Made me drink.” Husk confessed. “Shouldn’t have. Look where it got me. so much for being polite and trying to be happy with what I got, I should have just told them all to go fuck themselves and left. Fuck, I think I would have better odds of being in Heaven right now if I had!”

“Heaven is overrated.” Mira claimed. “I imagine it has a whole lot less booze.”

“Yeah but the people, you know?” Husk said. “All the best people go there. Then I’m left with scum like you.”

Mira laughed at that. “Is that whole business about redemption here true?” she asked.

“Yep. They took Niffty from us, bless her soul. She was an annoying ball of optimism. It feels empty here without her.” He shrugged. “All the best people go there.”

Mira hummed.

She already had the info she needed, probably. But it would be good to get this dirtbags phone number, just to make the trip actually worth it. “Are you going to try to go there too?” she asked, just to make sure.

Husk actually stopped to ponder that for a moment. Then he shook his head. “I don’t think I could change.”

“Don’t think or don’t want?” Mira smirked. “Because usually guys just don’t want to change.”

“That’s sexist.”

“Probably.” She admitted. “Better even things out by me, as a woman, asking for your number.”

“Oh!” Husk purred. “Have my alcoholic ways intrigued you?”

“No.” Mira said. “I just need you as an alibi for when I tell people about redemption.”

“Yikes, no thank you.”

“Come on.”

“No.”

“You can’t say no to me, I’m too cute.” Mira said, completely deadpan.

Husk looked her up and down. She clearly had no interest in him, but it was rare finding a drinking pal like her. Reluctantly, he wrote his number down on a small napkin. This better not bite him in the ass in the future.


	21. Workaholics

Katie Killjoy impatiently tapped her fingers against the counter. What was taking Mira so long?

Well, there was traffic. Hellish traffic. It took an eternity to get anywhere unless you walked and that lazy bitch probably didn’t do that. Katie didn’t pay anyone enough to take a cab or afford a car so… ugh… the bus probably.

She dug her fingernails into the table, scraping off the wood and her manicure alike.

Why did she always put herself in these situations? Some vague miscalculation forcing her to wait ENDLESSLY! She didn’t have time to wait; people wanted NEWS! Hourly! They wanted to be shocked and excited and cry and suffer and Katie wanted to watch! She wanted to be the face that told everyone what was really going on in the Happy Hotel…

And yet she waited. Until the late hours of the night, she waited.

It was the pain of being an Entertainer. Of being on top of everything. Katie spent all of her time in front of cameras and then when they turned off, suddenly, she didn’t know what to do anymore. She felt empty, her actions meaningless. Everyone was just wasting her time yet she had So Much Time to waste! Sometimes… sometimes Katie wanted to die with the feed, disappear as soon as she was no longer needed and come right back when the cameras rolled once more.

Without millions watching her, she no longer had a meaning to exist… in a sense.

And that was pathetic. Questioning herself like this was pathetic. But it was all she could do right now. She had dug her own grave and now she would wait and wait and wait and wait.

* * *

Charlie waited for her sense of reality to return to her.

Not being able to get out of a working mindset, an inability to separate her work from her free time; it was easy pinpointing issues when it was all she did all day. And it was funny too, so many of her clients had remarkably similar issues, to the point where Charlie was beginning to converse with them about their shared Problems as if she was an Actual Person!

No, sir! She was not! She was a Professional Psychologist who wouldn’t dare actually closely befriend more than one of her clients! Or two! Or, well, Husk was pretty decent too, once you got to know him…

But it was beginning to become an issue.

Charlie got up from her armchair in the soundproof therapy room. It was getting late. _Really_ late. So late that, technically, it was early.

Vaggie was standing guard outside and she was probably starting to worry, what with the last client having exited twenty minutes ago. Charlie didn’t want to worry anyone, she really didn’t, it was just… very, remarkably difficult not to.

There was a soft knock on the door.

“Come in!” Charlie said, in her automatic friendly-therapist voice, before remembering that she was done for the day.

Vaggie poked her head in. “It’s me. Hey.”

Charlie laughed awkwardly in response. Vaggie was wearing that very adorable smile of hers. The one that Charlie loved but hated. That worried look, because Vaggie was always worried, but she only graced Hell with that smile when she was looking directly at Charlie. It made the princess melt every time.

Vaggie squeezed herself through the tiny gap in the door and closed it behind her.

“You want to call it quits and go for a coffee with me, right?” Vaggie asked.

There was something in her tone and phrasing that set Charlie off immediately.

“Who is at the door?” she asked curiously.

Vaggie groaned. “Ugh, come on! Let’s go take a break; I’m tired of chasing people away all day and you’re probably emotionally dead… Frappuccino. Now.”

“Yeah but who is it though?”

Vaggie stepped in place as if unsure what to do or what to say. Whoever it was, she really didn’t want Charlie and them in the same room together. Which could mean quite a lot of people. Her father, for one, but Charlie hadn’t heard from him in forever, despite everything…

In that sense, it could also be Helsa, although Charlie doubted that she would agree to a face-off on Charlie’s turf. Still, having her main rival here would definitely spice up a therapy session for once, as ridiculous of a thought that is.

Or maybe it was raw power that Vaggie was worried about, rather than emotional baggage. Charlie pondered for a moment what overlord would potentially consider giving the Happy Hotel a shot.

Wait.

“Is it Alastor?” If Vaggie could frown any more, she would have. Charlie almost awed. “Let him in; we’re on good terms, remember?”

Reluctantly Vaggie reached for the door before stopping and turning to face Charlie one more time. “But then we’re calling it quits for today, alright?”

There wasn’t even that much left of today but Charlie nodded regardless. Vaggie nodded back and opened the door, letting Alastor in and leaving again without even making eye contact with him.

Charlie noted that before focusing her attention to her sponsor.

Alastor’s bright smile and enthusiasm filled the room with a much livelier energy, even though all he did was greet her and sit down on the couch next to her armchair.

In the past few days Charlie had rarely, if ever, seen him without his boyfriend in arm. They seemed pretty happy too, despite the fact that Angel seemed to be going out of his way to spread rumours about the two of them. The one about them dating because Alastor was trying to get over his arachnophobia was her personal favourite.

It had gotten to the point where she felt uncanny seeing the two separated.

Or maybe it was the tired look in Alastor’s eyes that was strange. Charlie supposed that they shared that trait.

“Are you here for therapy or a business discussion?” Charlie asked, smiling despite her exhaustion.

“Therapy, actually. It appears your hotel's allure finally got to me!” he said with a laugh. His ears had attempted to flatten down before being raised up once again. Faking confidence was very common amongst first-timers. Which, Charlie supposed, Alastor was now.

Alastor.

Was her client now.

Charlie paused all of her bodily functions for two seconds.

_Alastor was her client right now._

She attempted to quickly regain control and tried to suppress the disturbingly large smile that had made itself at home on her face. _This was so unprofessional!! Grinning like an idiot in front of a first-timer, like she was mocking him!_ Although, Alastor seemed to almost relax at her excitement.

She hid her expression behind her trusty notebook and started scribbling things down.

Name, Room Number and Date, among as many doodles of random smiling animals as she could draw within the few seconds that she allowed herself.

“Alright!” she said, trying her best to not sound too excited about having this particular name amongst her notes. “One session usually takes around an hour but the first one will take two.”

Oh, it was going to be sunrise by the time she was done… but that… well… it would be fine.

“Did you have that much time prepared?” she asked politely.

Alastor raised an eyebrow. “Dear, I believe neither of us have that much time on our hands. What are you planning to do? Ask me about my childhood?”

“Actually, knowing somebody's background before-“

Alastor cut her off by putting a finger to her lips. “No, I don’t think we’ll be doing any of that today.”

“You must have come to me about something specific, then.” She decided.

“Well, yes, but that was before. Now, I’m more interested in what is going on with you and working until this hour.” He tilted her chin up with a single finger. “You look tired. Have you been here since yesterday or did your shift just start?”

“Oh, no, please don’t worry about any of that right now.” Charlie kept her tone comforting.

She couldn’t decide why Alastor was throwing her so many curveballs. Still, this was no time to question her client’s intentions and so Charlie tried her best to educate Alastor on how ‘talking’ worked.

“This is a session between you and me and I’m here to listen, alright? We’re here to talk about you and I’m here to just sit in this listening chair and take in everything that you’re willing to tell me. Now, could you-“ Charlie was cut off by the realization that she was now levitating.

Alastor had grabbed her by the wrist, even though she had no idea when he had even gotten up, and was dangling her in the air like a ragdoll. Some part of her expected a very specific kind of pain flaring up- but it didn’t happen.

Instead, she was lowered onto the couch and Alastor made himself comfortable on the armchair, copying her pose of legs crossed and leaning somewhat forward.

Charlie stared.

“Why are you so overworked?” He asked. Smiling. “Tell me the biggest headlines.”

“This… uh… this isn’t how it is supposed to go at all.”

Alastor shrugged. “I wouldn’t know.”

Charlie buried her face in her hands.

She had gone through so much in this room. Life stories had been shared, deepest darkest secrets and the hidden meaning behind brutal actions had been uncovered. This room was what had kept her grounded through all of it, it had laws and rules and a logical order that she had come to really appreciate. It was the one stable thing that kept her grounded no matter how crazy her client of the hour got.

There were, of course, instances of clients acting out; biting into the furniture, setting fire to the furniture, yelling AT the furniture but nobody had ever parodied it quite like this.

Charlie laughed in absolute exhausted defeat.

“I’m so tired.” She said.

“Care to explain why?”

“We’re getting popular.” She shrugged. “Lots of people.”

“And you decided to just rehabilitate them one after the other, all by yourself.”

“Uh… yeah?”

“Rehabilitate all of Hell… by yourself.”

“Yes.”

Alastor thoughtfully switched his crossed legs. “And how does that make you feel?”

Charlie barked out a laugh at that. “Alastor, what are we doing?”

“I am, in fact,” he started. “in the Listening Chair. So now, I am asking you, as the Listening Person, how you feel about your life choices.”

“As a listening person.” Charlie laughed. “You, the radio host?”

“It’s because of the chair.” Alastor explained.

Charlie shook her head. “I just… I think a part of me just assumed that it would all fall apart before it came to this. Or, I don’t know, maybe I just didn’t think so many people would… or perhaps I just underestimated all of the time I would need to work with all of them.”

“And that makes you feel… how?”

“Stupid.”

Alastor grinned. “Yes, you are.”

“Wow.” Charlie said. “Really? Are you really doing this to me right now?”

Alastor got up, if only to act even more dramatic. “Of course! This is exactly the kind of entertainment that I come here for! However, I suppose you being so worked out does put a damper on things. If you can’t even find the time to rehabilitate the people who come here than I can’t watch them all fail!”

Alastor pondered this fact for a moment.

“I will do you a favour, dear.” He said. “I believe I could find you further manpower to aid in your endeavours.”

Charlie blinked. “Other psychologists? No offence but I’d rather not have Harley Quinn’s messing with my clientele.”

“That’s a very valid worry but I’m going to have to ask you to just trust me on this one. I’ll get it done by…” he looked at the clock on the wall, easily visible from the armchair. “Some point this evening.”

“You can do that?” Charlie asked. The mere idea of… well, having other people here was exhilarating! She could discuss clients and talk to others by a water cooler and TAKE TIME OFF! And all for the small teeny tiny price of Alastor dancing around the question of why he had come here in the first place!

“Of course! After all, I am a man of ACTION! Just sitting around and talking is unbearable.”

_Oh, so that’s why._

“Now, if you’ll excuse me, it appears I have run out of all the time I had.”

Alastor brushed down his suit in a rather careless manner and Charlie rolled her eyes and smiled.

“Alastor.” He turned to look at the little princess who was busying herself with her notes. “I can make time for you this evening at 9pm. Would that be alright?”

He furrowed his brows. “What for? More talking?”

“Join me for a coffee. After all, you seem so invested in me not over-working.” She didn’t even look up to meet his eyes. “If you come see me, I won’t have to spend that time working, right?”

“Right you are!” Alastor shifted uneasily. “We could discuss the new workers.”

Charlie nodded. “We can talk about whatever.”

Alastor hummed, taking a moment to find the right words. “I’ll see you later then. Take… take care.”

“See you soon.”

Alastor grabbed the door handle and moved out of the way as he opened the door, skilfully avoiding Vaggie’s body as she fell into the room.

Alastor left before he could even begin to hear the huffy rant about eavesdropping and client confidentiality.


	22. Good Intentions, Bad Execution

It wasn’t exactly a lie that Alastor had been all out of time, after all, he had gotten up early and snuck out of Angel's room in order to go see Charlie. He had thought the matter urgent but clearly there were more urgent things at hand.

He couldn’t see how Charlie could be any help to him if she couldn’t even keep up with her own schedule. Poor, stupid thing, she was. Alastor had no idea why Angel liked her so much.

He strode to the lobby, the windows tinted with the early sun rays, and waved at Husks sleeping form. The demon seemed to have fallen asleep at his work post, as always. The fact that there wasn’t even a blanket draped over him was just another sign that Charlie was overworked.

Alastor was already on his way to Angel’s room when he stopped to consider that, perhaps, HE could do that favour in place of Charlie.

He sighed and turned around, grabbing the desired draping cloth from the lobby sofa and dumped it on the cat. Husk seemed to stir a bit but was otherwise unaffected. No gratitude, obviously. Alastor wanted to die. A pillow. Right, that was another thing Charlie did. Husk didn’t deserve this but that didn’t matter.

It was, as Charlie put it, some decency. He was showing Husk some decency because Husk didn’t have any. Sinners didn’t have decency. It was why Hell was Hell. The worst people came and became worse and worse over time, their flaws turning them into twisted parodies of themselves.

And he remembered Husk. He remembered the pathetic excuse for an addiction that had brought him down here. Looking at him now, sleeping daily surrounded by his alcoholic undoing; killing him at this point would be mercy. It would be ACTUAL decency, it would be what he had been taught, it would be-

Husk screeched like some sort of aggressive seagull, pulling Alastor out of his thoughts. He lifted the pillow off the others face and watched in confusion as Husk scrambled to his feet and away from him, hissing and fluffing up and glaring at the Radio Demon from the opposite side of the counter.

“Oops!” Alastor said, laughing at the strange accident. “That wasn’t my intention, I must have zoned out again.”

Husk had never looked so baffled.

“It happens to the best of us.” Alastor said, deciding to grab some liquors while he was back there. He elegantly combed through the selection. “You had some cherry stuff here somewhere, yes?”

Husk sat on the barstool and rubbed at his face with his claws. “What the FUCK is wrong with you?!”

“Like I said, I’m very airheaded these days. I’m working on it.” Alastor said. There were three cherry liquors. He couldn’t remember which one it was that Angel liked so much.

“Airheaded?!!”

“_Don’t yell_, everyone is sleeping.”

“So was I before YOU tried to KILL ME!”

“Oh, a bit of choking wouldn’t have killed you!” Alastor said, grabbing Husk’s cheek playfully. “If I really wanted to kill you, I would have stabbed you in the eye with something holy!” Husk buried his face in his hand and pointed over Alastor’s shoulder. The Radio Demon followed the finger with his eyes and ears alike. “Oh! Yes, that’s the one!” he said, taking the desired liquor. “Thank you.”

“Yeah, whatever. What do you mean you’re working on it?” Husk asked, annoyed but not quite stupid enough to go back to sleep after what had just happened.

“Just an onslaught of random thoughts.” Alastor explained in a far too casual and light-hearted manner. “I’ve decided that helping out Charlie might get it off my mind.”

Husk folded his arms. “Sounds to me like you’re avoiding the issue.”

“Is that a problem?”

“Oh, no, don’t mind me.” Husk said, rubbing at his neck. “I just wanted to point it out.”

“I avoid issues I can’t solve.” Husk scanned Alastor for any trace of emotion other than smugness. He didn’t find any. “But it appears that this particular problem is rather hard to ignore.”

Husk raised an eyebrow. “Are you telling me all of this because I’m a bartender?”

“I’m telling you all of this because if you tried anything, I could kill you. Charlie not so much.”

“Go talk to her.” Husk huffed. “She won’t fuck with you. That’s just not her, you know?”

“Oh, I know.” Alastor said, finally leaving the cat demon alone. So much for being nice. “It’s just not really me, either.”

The door handle squeaked slightly and Alastor made a mental note to oil it or rip it off once Angel was awake. The air had grown thick over the long night and there was the heavy smell of perfume looming over, covering up the smell of _everything else_. In a way, it reminded Alastor of his earthly home; the lovely aroma of the woods outside covering the stench of blood that never quite disappeared.

Alastor left the liquor on the bedside table and snuck his way back into Angel’s arms.

He moved very delicately, as to not disturb the spider demon, although that was rarely necessary. Angel slept like a brick. Maybe he hadn’t even heard Husk screaming, which would be very convenient… Angel wouldn’t approve… not Husk. Angel liked Husk. Alastor couldn’t fathom why Angel liked Husk.

It had taken a while for him to get comfortable in Angels grasp. The spider had so many arms and a tendency to squeeze whatever he got a hold-off. Alastor had learned how to make use of that tendency. He took one of Angel's hands into his own and watched the slender white fingers give it a squeeze.

_It was the most comforting thing in the world._

Alastor sighed and let his ears droop over the soft pillow. It was warm sleeping with another person. Warm and fluffy. And once again Alastor found that he couldn’t fall asleep.

How disappointing.

It didn’t suit him. Worrying about things like this, worrying about being nice to people he didn’t care about, picking alcohol based on flavour rather than shades of orange and brown… surely it didn’t suit somebody like him at all!

He couldn’t blame himself for wanting to go so very soft around somebody like Angel but… but this was taking it too far. His love for the other was causing a neverending tug of war in his head; making him show halfhearted kindness and turning his fake compassion into cruelty in an instant.

How did Angel do it?

How did he manage to care enough to put up that kind of act?

Briefly, Alastor wondered why he was even trying to change.

Then Angel shifted in his sleep, moving closer rather than farther, and two arms wrapped themselves tightly around the Radio Demon’s body while another decided to hold one of his antlers for absolutely no reason.

The spider relaxed once more and rested his head on Alastor’s chest.

Alastor looked up at the ceiling, paralysed by the absolute amount of affection surrounding him. Angel exhaled tiny huffs of warm air and Alastor felt a shiver go down his spine.

Alastor let himself melt into Angel’s touch.

“Hm.” A smile formed on his lips. “I wonder…”

_Will you still be here when I wake up?_

He contemplated briefly if he could do any better than cherry liquor next time. He had heard of breakfast in bed before although he had never gone beyond the simple concept… and he hadn’t exactly grown up around the best example of romance so it wasn’t like he had a lot of knowledge to work with.

Maybe if he paid closer attention to what exactly Angel enjoyed eating the most, he could plan something out… they would have to go outside of the hotel for that though, some kind of open buffet would do the trick. That could be very nice actually…

…

_Some overlord he was._


	23. Old vs New

The Crooked Eye was a bar in the third circle that usually attracted a lot of tourists due to it’s very open and inviting nature. The only that gave away its actual purpose was the fact that Alastor visited it semi-often and also the fact that people who visited it tended to get their identity stolen.

Yes, The Crooked Eye was in fact, a bar for spies!

The bar appeared to be closed from the outside, despite the fact that it was almost noon. But this being a bar for spies and all, everyone important was already aware of the fact that this was because Alastor was hosting a _party_.

The simple fact that demons had actually shown up to this very suspicious and out of nowhere invite was either due to the fact that the host had promised to pay back old debt and spies were notoriously _broke_ or due to the fact that there was more to this meeting than met the eye.

From small and childlike demons to very formally dressed inconspicuous demons, they were all fine ladies and gentlemen who would betray you the moment things went awry; which were exactly the kind of people who regularly survived Alastor’s schemes.

They knew the Radio Demon more than Alastor knew himself and they all half expected it when his more secretive counterpart showed up.

Vox sat across of Alastor and immediately everyone else on the table got up and seated themselves at different tables. The overlords didn’t mind, Alastor sipping at his whiskey and Vox admiring the interior décor of the bar. It had quite luscious reds and greens, with a very respectable variety of booze that nobody but Alastor could probably afford and a gambling table that was just bound to stir up trouble on the daily.

“A psychologist, eh?” Vox asked.

“Does all new technology repeat dialogue?” Alastor said and laughed. The spies laughed with him.

“Does all old technology make no sense?” Vox answered. Some spies couldn’t help themselves.

Alastor paid no attention to the invested audience gathering around the two. “Pardon?”

“You’re making no sense.” Vox repeated. “One second you’re only helping out the hotel to watch sinners suffer, the next you’re here bargaining with me.”

“What can I say? Times are changing.”

“YOU JUST SAID THAT!” Vox yelled. _People tried not to laugh._

Alastor lowered his eyelids.

With one flick of his hand, the spies scattered outside. They would undoubtedly listen but that was to be expected.

Alastor got up from his seat and walked around their table dramatically. “I did, what of it? Did you expect me to stay exactly the same through hundreds of years?”

“It’s only been four weeks, Alastor.” The screen hissed. “Seriously, what happened?”

“Angel happened.” Alastor confessed. It wasn’t that much of a confession between the two.

“Is it really true, then?” Vox smirked, resting his head on his hands.

“I can’t really deny it.” Alastor said, returning to his seat.

“And now what? Now you’re going to help Hazbin Hotel?”

Alastor shrugged, not giving into Vox’s antagonistic behaviour. “I suppose I will.”

“You don’t sound very enthusiastic.” The TV mused.

“I’m digging my own grave.”

“Is it a fun dig?”

Alastor grinned widely. “Very.”

Vox giggled at that. It was always a strange noise, like hearing a stuttering video. Some kind of glitch that really shouldn’t happen. “I could help you.” Vox said dryly. “But what would I get out of it?”

“Entertainment.”

“Ah, yes, of course!” Vox exclaimed. “It’s always entertainment. It’s all you can offer me! EVER! Alastor, you do realize I am very hard to entertain, yeah?” his eyebrow was raised by a couple of pixels. “I see everything all of the time. Suffering, crying, all kinds of racist, homophobic jokes that have been done to death. The Happy Hotel does offer something new, sure, but if you think I’m going to torture myself with your boring podcasts just to get some insight, then you are wrong.”

“Not that kind of entertainment.” Alastor corrected. “Live one.”

“It’s all LIVE.” Vox rolled his eyes. “All LIVE all the time; who cares.”

“I mean, entertainment in real life, you stupid circuit box.” Alastor hissed. He pulled out an item that really shouldn’t exist on his person. “Since you never go outside anyway, I thought this could be interesting to you but it’s your call, obviously.”

Vox looked at the smartphone Alastor had put on the table like it was some kind of magic card. There was a brand-new sensation in his wires; electrical charges were being exchanged at an accelerated speed. It felt… fresh. New! YES!

“What are you going to do?” he asked, trying to hide the giddiness.

“IF you agree to help me locate the least wacky wack-jobs in Hell…” he teased. “I’ll agree to let You watch Me attempt to text my boyfriend with this awful device!”

Vox barked out laughter. It sounded scattered and uneven as if even the pitch of his voice was laughing.

“Full disclosure, I’ve only tried to use it once and _it was a nightmare_.”

“Oh, I can IMAGINE!” Vox said. “Why do you have it??”

Alastor seemed a touch embarrassed. “Angel gifted it to me. He said it reminded him of me, somehow.”

“And here I thought he knew you even a little bit.” Vox said, finally calming down.

“He knows that I’m, and I quote, ‘vintage’ and he assumed the i-phone-one was, and I quote, ‘also vintage’ so he put two and two together and got me… this.” He sighed. “I couldn’t just… return it, it’s a gift!”

Vox took the device and looked it over. “Looks new too. Cute case.”

“Ah, yes, I am actually quite fond of the ‘case’ as you call it.” Alastor said, admiring the plastic depiction of an old wooden radio box. “Reminds me of better times, back when people actually had to use a bit of their imagination to be entertained.”

“Such a sick burn on current technology.” Vox whimpered, wiping away tears that weren’t there. “Where did he even find that? I know they sell cassette cases but not dirty old radio ones…”

“I guess he knows me well, after all.” Alastor said, a very tiny, very incredibly smug smile plastered on his lips.

“Go easy on the ego juice,” Vox said, rolling his eyes. “you only have one gimmick and it’s pretty easy to figure out what it is.” He avoided the Radio Demon’s gaze for a few moments until he found the right words to tease him with. “Does Angel use a lot of modern technology?”

Alastor eyed the TV head suspiciously. “Not a lot. Why do you care?”

Vox had copied Alastor’s smug expression remarkably well. “Do you disapprove?”

“There are things I disapprove more off.” Alastor dodged.

“Do you try to get him off his phone and whatnot?”

“I don’t really agree with his choice of career and certainly not what he does in his free time…” Alastor said. “…but the only thing I discourage him from is the amount of non-air substances he tries to snort.” He glared at Vox with hatred as delicious as aged wine. “I don’t control my boyfriend.”

Vox’s smile disappeared at that. Brows he didn’t have furrowing. “Even though you want to?”

“I’m not_ THAT_ attached to old technology.” Alastor deflected.

_“Yes, you are!”_

The static growing around Alastor growled. “Fine. Yes. Even though I want to… I do nothing. Are you happy now?”

Vox hummed, taking in all of this strange information.

It wasn’t that abnormal for tortured souls down in hell to get addicted to the dopamine called love. Vox had seen it happen to people he thought he knew countless times but… still… Alastor was nothing if not a creature of habit.

He lived so cosily in his own little comfort zone that he had managed to bore himself into risking his reputation in order to support the Happy Hotel.

And now he owned a smartphone.

And a boyfriend too… was it all really as easy as just getting involved with Charlie Magne?

“Sounds like a pretty good deal.” Vox finally said.

Alastor narrowed his eyes. “Excuse me?”

“Some info in exchange for watching you struggle. Sounds good.”

“That. Yes, right.” Alastor pressed delicate fingers against his temples. “I have a lot on my mind, do try and forget whatever excess of information I just told you.”

“Oh, no, I don’t mind.” Vox said. _It’s funny seeing you care_, he didn’t say.


	24. Good Old Enemies

Alastor’s spies had gathered outside the bar and were using unique shadow abilities to peer inside. Well, some of them were. The rest were just doing things the old-fashioned way; breaking a window or climbing on the roof or threatening other, better spies with a knife to tell them what the fuck was going on inside.

Alastor and Vox didn't commonly meet, especially not on Alastor's turf. Walkie talkies and phones were handed around as the spies whispered into the static, fuelling the shared knowledge about the bad blood between the two Overlords.

Some chick whose name may or may not be Isabella had decided that this was the ideal time to start taking bets. She climbed on the shoulder of Alastor’s most buff most absurdly un-spy looking spy and started keeping tabs of things.

Most spies put their bets on Alastor and then expressed their disappointment in not being able to bet on Vox. To them, he was a much more relatable Overlord; somebody who wielded information like a weapon, using blackmail to shield himself from harm, with few powers to speak of. Vox was their idol, even if Alastor was their boss.

Vox didn’t _need _spies. He had as many eyes as there were screens in hell. And if anyone crossed him, Vox would leak a steady flow of secrets about them, real or imaginary, which would inevitably get them killed. Vox was just reliable enough of a source of information to be useful and just dangerous enough to not mess with, the ideal spy who unfortunately worked for and against nobody, instead choosing to live a quiet life in his Studio.

If the Television demon was like poison, slowly consuming and destroying everything around him, then Alastor was like a knife, cutting through all that bullshit.

Few would dare oppose them and even fewer would risk fighting them but there was no saying when one of them would finally kill the other, what with them constantly insulting each other and everybody constantly fuelling the fire.

Spies lived for this kind of mutual hatred. _No way they would let their fear of death get in the way of watching this unfold. It would be a glorious fight. Something you could only see once in a lifetime…_

Vox had himself muted as Alastor struggled to get past the phone's lock screen due to his inability to help himself from touching the physical buttons whenever he wanted to erase something.

“Should I be surprised that you even remembered your password?” Vox couldn’t help but tease.

“Angel helped me set it up.” the Radio Demon said sheepishly. “It’s the frequency of my old radio channel. Not really something I could forget.”

“Do you use that password for everything?”

“Well, yes!“ Alastor hesitated. “Wait. Can you read my messages from any phone if you type in that password?” Vox was muted once again and Alastor pulled a face as he watched the pile of wires lose his mind in silent laughter. “Is that a yes?”

The spies outside were somewhat disappointed. Adrian (maybe) pocketed his knife and decided to go back home. A whole bunch of spies started discussing why the two weren’t ripping each other to pieces like they had hoped. Well, if Alastor did kill Vox, who knew what would happen… fun things, obviously, but what exactly?

“Which of the… the things is the texting thing?” Alastor said, his ears getting lower and lower with each stumble of words.

He looked at the icons on the screen, vaguely recognizing some of them among all the visual white noise. His eyes drifted from one to the other until he realized that next to the very stylized phone receiver looking whatever there was a speech bubble thing. _That was it!_

Vox slow clapped sarcastically at his victory but it was a victory nonetheless.

“I bet if I practiced, I could learn how to use one of these.” Alastor noticed.

“_Yeah_, it’s almost like you’re being a stubborn relic by refusing to learn!” Vox giggled.

The spies outside kicked each other as they muffled their laughter. A discussion was started on who of the two had the better insults. Jane (or maybe it was Janette) claimed that since Vox was such a nerd, he was probably getting all his material from outside sources. She was stabbed with a knife and then a fist fight started.

Alastor tapped on Angel’s name, happy to finally have found his way through the maze. He was met by an onslaught of unread messages.

They were cut-off too, simply way too long to fit on the screen and therefore lost in the oblivion that was beyond. Lost. Forever.

But not to Vox.

With an unearthly talent the television demon took the slippery device out of Alastor’s claws and started scrolling up and through his messages. Instinctively, the Radio Demon attempted to get the device back.

“ ‘If you can’t read this, I hope it shows up on the lock screen: I’m not coming home until 2 am!’ “ Vox read out loud, pushing Alastor away with one arm. The Radio Demon grabbed onto it and dug his claws into the mechanical meat. “Wow, you two are like an old married couple!”

Alastor hissed through gritted teeth. "How dare you." Vox dodged his swipe and crawled under a table. Alastor followed, scraping long claw marks into the ground as he did. "I ignored it the first time but how dare you call me OLD?!"

“Oh, look, it’s a pig in a top-hat.” Vox turned the screen over to the demon he was currently in the process of escaping. Alastor’s features softened briefly.

“It fit him perfectly...”

Vox hummed before kicking his foot in the others face and reading on. There wasn’t that much to read, with the phone being new and Angel getting no replies, but what _was_ there answered a lot of his questions; things he _didn’t _know.

Vox’s powers had limitations. Although every screen was an eye he could look through, he couldn’t actually see what was on the screen. Most of the time Vox only knew vague details.

_It was like having food on your face._

There had been an uprise in Angel related gossip in the last few weeks that had practically doubled the number of eyes watching porn starring him. With Hell being Hell and people being awful, adultery was rather profitable. Angel was getting a lot of high-profile requests and, to Valentino’s delight, he was delivering!

Their studio had been profiting massively with not a peep from Alastor…

Vox had assumed that the Radio Demon was either incapable of jealousy or the general consensus was true and the two were only in this relationship to try and manipulate each other.

These very one-sided messages suggested otherwise.

It seemed that Angel and Alastor were somewhat of a polyamorous couple, with Angel often asking the other if he could sleep with certain people and giving details on what late hour of the night he would be returning ‘home’ or ‘to bed’.

_Alastor wasn’t lying to me,_ Vox realised. _He really is in love. They both are._

“ ‘Hey Al, that picnic idea of yours was really cute. Also, did you strangle- "

“That is personal!” the Radio Demon said, slamming the TV’s head into the ground and dragging him out of hiding. The sound of cracking and screeching glass overpowered all ambient noises in an instant.

“It was the last sent message.” Vox pointed out from his position in the ground. “I would have seen it - ow- no matter what.”

Alastor picked him up and poked a finger against his screen, causing it to flash strange colours “_Maybe you’ve seen enough_.” he hissed.

“Kill me and I’ll reveal secrets that will get you and-“

“And everyone I love killed, bla b la bla." Alastor let go of the other Overlord and folded his arms in an almost offended manner. Like Vox had just ruined the moment. "Always the same lines, get some new material!”

“Sometimes I say: ‘I’ll reveal secrets that will get your boss killed’…” Vox clarified, rubbing the handprint off his face. “That gets them to stop too.”

Alastor waved him off and stood up, taking his phone back in the process. With a few clicks and taps, and minor struggling, he unlocked the phone once more, managing to finally start texting Angel back.

Vox dusted off his suit and peered over Alastor’s shoulder. It was strange, working together again like this. Pretending like nothing bad had ever happened and hating each other in silence. It was a dangerous game Vox was playing, getting involved with Alastor like this, like he hadn't learnt anything, and yet...

“Tell him I say hi.” Vox said, the bright light of his screen looming over the other. “Oh, you’re actually doing it. Ok, no, that’s not… That’s not how you write Vox, it’s with an ‘x’ not a ‘ck’. No, that’s not how you delete something, here, there, yes! Yes! And the long bar down there is the spacebar. Yeah, exactly.” Vox hesitated. “And this is the time to press ‘send’.”

‘Voxx says hi’

“-sincerely, Alastor 2019!” Vox covered his face and pretended to sob. “Glorious. I feel so honoured to witness something so beautiful. Such a stunning display of power and pride and grandmother energy…” he uncovered one eye when he heard the sound on an incoming message. “Uh! What does he say?”

‘Al?’

‘You’re texting me??’

“Aww. I bet he’s proud!” Vox said, nudging Alastor. “And you barely even needed my help! Good for youuu!”

“Wait for it.” The latter said.

‘Whose Voxx?’

“He doesn’t KNOW??” Vox roared, almost drowning out the sound of Alastor’s laughter. “I know the kid is not into politics but I’m Valentino’s fucking _business partner!_ We run the-the bloody studio together, what the FUCK?!” he turned his attention to Alastor. “What kind of radio host are you anyway? Not teaching your boyfriend about _politics_!”

“Angel doesn’t listen.” Alastor said, wiping away tears. “Ever. I love him.”

“This is ridiculous!” Vox huffed, walking over to the bar. “Give me something non-conductive, will you??”

Alastor grinned, watching the object-head loosen his collar and pour some pure alcohol into his over-heated circuits, before returning his attention to the small device in his claws.

‘Tv face’

‘He agreed to help’

‘Join us later’

“Hey, don’t text without me!” Vox yelled without even turning to face him. “I wanna see!!”

‘Why don’t you use proper punctuation, love? ;) ‘

‘Cant find the dot’

‘Cant find anything’

‘Dont tease’

‘Awwwwww!‘

‘I’ll find you with that gps thing that you don’t understand, ok?’

‘Ok’

Alastor sighed in relief before just letting the phone turn off the screen on its own.

“You two are so unreal.” Vox huffed, returning to his seat slightly more drenched and exhausted.

“Out of it already?” Alastor grinned, pushing the tiny phone back into his coat pocket. “You should _really _go out more!”

“Ugh. Make me.” Vox’s processor hummed for a moment before his screen flashed three faces and names. “These are the most-sane psychologists I can think of. Although, even that is debatable.”

Alastor leaned in closer in order to better focus on the faces. The first was a very young-looking male demon, followed by a large butch demoness and then a bouncer looking fellow. They didn’t exactly fit what Alastor imagined when he pictured a psychologist, but then again, nerds had a habit of dying quickly down in Hell.

The nerd right in front of Alastor however, was doing rather well for himself! The Radio Demon grinned at the fragile screen and got even closer, enjoying it immensely as Vox struggled against the urge to back away. Alastor had made it a habit to tease the weak and watch them squirm. And with him being an Overlord, most demons were weak.

_Sinners, all of them. They deserved whatever he threw at them._

The Radio Demon had initially assumed that somebody like Vox would die within a week in the Overlord position, so despicably weak and so deeply despised by all the demons he had hurt, but he had managed.

They had a lot in common... and that thought alone made Alastor want to risk strangling the other.

“Do you know where these people live?” Alastor asked, finally leaning back.

Vox deflated in relief. “Of course. Although, I doubt it's something your army of spies couldn’t handle.”

“I’d rather have you show me.”

Vox pulled a face. “This isn’t a part of our deal.”

“Oh, come now! You could help me determine if they are really 'sane' and ‘good’.” Alastor laughed. “We could find out which of us is a better _spy_!”

Vox sighed. It couldn’t possibly be a trap… Alastor had too much to lose to try and kill him. Which meant, ugh, this was just another game he was playing. But Vox liked games. Games were fun. And it was so hard to have fun indoors all day, seeing everyone and everything.

Vox folded his arms and looked away in defeat.

“Anything you can do-” Alastor smirked. “I can do better!"

Vox laughed at that. “I can do anything better than YOU."


	25. Sarcasm or Care

Vox instinctively tensed when the two exited the bar. It was raining outside, as usual, although the streets were empty to an uncanny degree. It wasn’t exactly hard to tell that they were being watched. Vox let out an uneasy breath and hid his insecurities behind a wide smile.

But it wasn’t the spies he should be worried about. No, he knew them. Knew them by name, all of them. They weren’t exactly a threat, few of Alastor’s goons were.

No, the real threat here was the unpredictable nature of Alastor himself. A walking anomaly, Vox still remembered the first time they had met. Alastor’s wide eyes and excited demeaner… he had actually PRAISED HIM for killing an Overlord! It had confused Vox endlessly at the time but… but after a while Alastor’s way of thinking had become clear to him. All of the disdain, lies and fronts he put up had seemed so clear and obvious.

He had thought that Alastor was just a kindred spirit, bored of the world and looking for somebody to enjoy others misery with. Somebody fun that Vox could let in.

He should have known better.

The Radio Demon placed a comforting hand on the others shoulder and grinned widely when it made Vox flinch.

“Your screen turned off.” The Radio Demon informed, helpfully. 

Vox rolled his eyes. “You know it does that when I don’t pay attention.”

“Were you not paying attention?” Vox felt himself shrink further under Alastor’s grin. _He must be either bored or suicidal to even consider associating with this fucking nutjob once again…_

“I was thinking of the old times.” Vox felt the sentence sizzle out of him and it left him feeling broken. It was as if his voice box had spoken without any input at all.

Alastor hummed at that. “The time you _murdered _Patricia?”

“No, before that.”

He hummed once more, a bit more cheerfully. “Ah, good times!” Vox felt some kind of emotion blossom. “You were so young! So full of potential! And I… I was so _blind_.”

Vox couldn’t help but chuckle at that. Well, that solved the mystery!

He was _lonely_ and Alastor hadn’t changed _one. bit._

* * *

Angel put his phone away and stretched, making a show of taking up all the space in front of the counter, before leaning on it and grinning widely at the bartender. “My boyfriend just texted me~”

Husk didn’t even blink, forcing the smile off his lips.

“Oh, _come on_, I told you I’m sorry!”

“I don’t need an apology from you.” Husk reminded.

“I have no fucking idea what got into him!” Angel whined, burying his face on the counter. “Admittedly, he has been acting _a bit weird_ but…” Husk didn’t seem to mind, placing the colourfully complicated drink on Angels head. “…but I mean, everything has been weird, you know??” The cat demon admired his balancing skills for a brief moment. “I talked to him. About… about the hotel. I told him that I don’t want him to hurt anyone.”

That finally caught Husk’s attention. “Does he usually listen?”

“Yeah…” A genuine smile formed on the spider’s lips. “Always.”

“Have you considered that maybe he has gone mad?” Husk asked.

The glass almost tipped over as two pairs of arms buried his head protectively._ “UGH!”_

Angel Dust left the hotel a some time after interrogating Husk. The cat demon watched him leave and tried not to sigh loudly until he was no longer visible through the glass stained windows.

“Fucking Alastor.” Husk mumbled.

He would have to explain the situation to the princess too, although he doubted that he could explain it any better to her. If Angel Dust had somehow convinced the other to do some nose-candy then he was _completely fucked_. Everyone was. Alastor could barely contain himself as it was, it would be a nightmare to deal with him while-

The phone rang.

Husk lazily looked over to the landline before realizing that it was HIS phone that was ringing. A soft purr escaped him. Why, this was just perfect timing!

“Mira!” he practically yelled into the receiver.

* * *

“I’m telling you, he got high and tried to strangle me!”

“Oh my god…” Mira said. “That really doesn’t sound like him, you might be right.”

“I’m probably not but still, yikes.”

“You are right to be freaked out by it, Alastor is a fucking creep. I can’t imagine how frightened I’d be if he tried to kill me…”

“You wouldn’t be.”

“Oh, see that’s where you are wrong!” Mira corrected and Husk leaned back, anticipating the lecture with a strange sense of glee. “Just because I’m not afraid of Death doesn’t mean I’m not afraid of _dying_.”

“I don’t see the difference.”

“Well, it’s like you not being afraid of passing out but being afraid of bad drunken thoughts.”

“Ok, I see the difference.”

“So, anyway, my boss is looking at me like she is going to murder me in a minute so that’s terrifying…”

“You got to hang up?”

“No, I was supposed to invite you over and instead we are gossiping, you know?”

“Oh!” Husk almost got excited. “Is this the thing you told me about before? The, um, the trap, right?”

“Bingo! You know, the usual. I’ll die if you don’t come so I just wanted to let you know that if I never call you back after this it’s not because you aren’t fucking awesome.” Her monotone didn’t hide her giggle.

Husk chuckled. “Should I come save you?”

“No need, she does shit like this every week, I doubt this time will be drastically different.”

“Oh, come now.” Husk said, leaving back in his seat and staring up at the ceiling. “It would be rude to let you die all alone. At least let me join you for one last drink.”

“Are you _really_ that bored?”

“I think it’s more of the fact that both of our bosses want us dead… I feel a connection, you know? We should band together or something.”

Mira snapped her fingers. “You are trying to say: let’s get shitfaced.”

“Drinks on you?”

The dog demon barked out a laugh. “Of course! You’re coming over to my place, after all!” she hesitated. “But, seriously, I don’t want to get you in trouble…” she hesitated one more before groaning. “Fuck it. You’re right, we are going to get killed working for these assholes one of these days, might as well be today.”

“Might as well have fun with it, right? So optimistic! I like this new attitude of yours!”

“I like _you_.” Mira decided. “Let’s get drunk and run away together. Maybe we won’t die.”

“That’s the most romantic thing a lesbian has ever told me.” Husk decided.


	26. A Toxic Work Environment

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dear God, I am so sorry, I made the chapters shorter and now I've been adding the font for the last 3 hours  
HELLO! I'm very curious if anyone is still interested in this fic! If you are then do I have some news for you! I gave this whole fic another draft!! All the changes will be listed in the last Chapter.  
*evil laugh*
> 
> So anyway, this is a Valentino chapter because I've watched the music video. ENJOY! :33

Trigger Warning: Implied Sexual Assault

Valentino’s office did not need bodyguards.

Margareta knew this and yet she stood by his door with her girlfriend at the other side of it. They were on bouncer duties today, which was an honour or whatever but basically meant that they were to be quiet and stand in one place for a long period of time until valentine strode out all _fashionable_ and _cool_ and grabbed the two of them by the hip and then they did the whole song and dance of being the jewels of his _pimp act_.

It was unpleasant.

It was sad watching her girlfriend miserable and unable to articulate it. To watch her be grabbed and groped and to pretend to be nothing but happy and entertained and amazed at how brilliant valentine was until they were finally dismissed.

This was probably why her face light up when she saw her girlfriend attempt to do some sign language. It was gaining popularity among the whores to sign their displeasure to each other, since valentine hadn’t picked up on it… yet. They weren’t really any good at it but it was enough to at least feel like they were a community again. Fuck valentine for introducing silence during their breaks and **banning** certain words. If her girlfriend wanted to say ‘fuck this shit’ twenty five times she shouldn’t have to learn sign language to do so!

“Hungry. Fuck this shit.” Margareta signed.

“Horny. Fuck this shit.” Lime replied.

They quietly giggled.

“Tonight.” Margareta signed.

“Dinner?”

“The dinner is you.” She tried to sign. Her girlfriend seemed confused. Clearly, she had messed up.

One day things would be different. One day they would be replaced and their debt to valentine would be erased. One day they would get to do whatever the fuck they wanted. Margaret wasn’t even sure if they wanted the same thing or what it was that she wanted out of life anymore but… but she wanted to talk, to hug, to live one week without ever waking up in some weirdo’s room. She wanted to gain at least ten kilograms… preferably by eating cake exclusively.

Their chatter was interrupted by a number of strange sounds.

Even through Valentino’s iron-infused office doors, the sound of Killjoy’s insect claws digging themselves into the concrete was audible. Valentine groaned, looking up at the ceiling with tired eyes. He had been intending to sleep for the first time in days… all thanks to that static malfunction that was Alastor STEALING AWAY _his_ Angel Dust! WEEKS worth of planned strip events and personal requests! It wasn’t even about the money; he had a reputation of giving people whatever they wanted for a price and he felt that that power was suddenly and quite rudely taken away from him…

And all that gossip about the two dating…

He was frustrated with all of it, no wonder he was lashing out on his girls. They were all bitching about his rules and attitude and it made him want to strangle-

_He wanted to sleep._

Clang, clang, clang went Killjoy, moving her way from the walls to the ceiling in order to avoid the small crowds of off-duty prostitutes doing mindless chores.

What in the fuck did she want this time…

Something in Killjoy had burst. There was a pep in her step and a manic smile on her face. People avoided her out of pure survival instinct, watching in horror as more and more of the slender insect arms tor out of her body in order to increase her speed.

_No more views decline, _she thought.

_No more hosting fucking chefs_

All it was going to take was permission from Valentino that was ALL that was standing between her and millions of eyes looking at her beautiful face day and night!

Only the bouncers in front of Valentino’s office stood their ground. They recognized her, of course. She wasn’t from their department, technically, but even porn actresses knew about their sisters from the news industry.

“You ok?” Margareta asked, with actual sincere concern in her voice.

Killjoy smiled widely and gestured shakily at the door.

She _hated _getting permission from Valentino.

The girls exchanged empathetic glances before knocking on the door and taking their place at Killjoys left and right.

The door opened and the large Overlord peered down at them, his red eyes glowing as he clawed his way out of the dark, no, pitch black room.

Katie found herself unable to move, as if she had been tied up by invisible string.

Val rolled his eyes, inviting her in before shooing off the guards.

They looked worried but complied.

Valentino’s demeanour didn’t exactly change when they were behind closed doors. He ran his claws alongside Killjoy’s back with the foulest of expressions until she complied and gave him her coat.

“Did you stare into the spotlights too long, darlin’?” he asked. “Are you BLIND to the fact that it’s LATE?”

“Redemption is REAL.” Katie blurted out.

“What?” Valentino squinted, looking her over.

“Alastor hired a TV crew from me to disprove it but he couldn’t! So, _he_ _killed them_, that’s why they never returned!” Katie took in a deep breath, attempting to get her thoughts in order. “They sent me a short video though, took forever to get through but it’s good quality! I even sent one of the more disposable people to the hotel and-”

Valentino’s expression grew darker the longer Killjoy went on. “Is this another one of your conspiracy theories? You_ know_ my thoughts on those.”

“Have you even SEEN the video?” Katie practically shrieked. She clenched her teeth, choosing not to be intimidated by the man twice her size. “I sent it to you by email ten minutes ago!”

The look she got was enough to silence her.

Valentino cleared his throat.

“Hell has existed for a while now, hasn’t it…?” he asked. “Not a soul has been redeemed so far. Do

you understand what that means?” He moved away from Killjoy and over to the large window of his suit, peering over Hell.

“Well, DUH! That means it’s NEWS-WORTHY!” Katie said, stubbornly following him. Valentino groaned, clenching his fists and trying to contain himself.

“Vox would have said something… That shut-in knows it all. If somebody pointed a camera at it then he’s already witnessed it in real time. He would have alerted me by now!”

“I-“ Kiljoy started and stopped. “Don’t know about that…”

“None of what you’ve been telling me makes any sense.” Valentino hissed. “Maybe you should take that cute video of yours and _get lost_.”

“Could it be because Alastor is involved?”

“Fuck…” Valentino rubbed at his face, his razor-sharp claws leaving red lines wherever they went. “I don’t like what you’re suggesting.”

“I only know what I’ve told you.” Katie said. “Redemption is possible, I even sent somebody to confirm it. If you want further evidence Alastor and Charlie both have scar tissue to prove it.”

“What the FUCK are you talking about?!” Valentino hissed. “Ugh… I need to have a talk with Vox.”

Killjoy looked up at him with quite a bit of surprise in her eyes. “WHAT?! Did you not hear a word I said?!! Redemption is possible! It’s the news of the century, don’t you care that-“

**“I DON’T.”** Valentino grabbed Killjoy’s chin, lifting her until she was standing on the tips of her toes.

She almost choked on her attempts to supress a scream. Her thoughts, always going a mile a minute, stopped. Her desires, her ambitions faded into the background as Valentino’s red eyes glaring down at her became her reality.

“I have an entertainment EMPIRE to run and Vox’s betrayal could mean _MY DEMISE_.” Valentino said, his grip tight. Killjoy was more so feeling the emotion behind his words rather than actually hearing them. “There are millions of demons ready to overthrow me as soon as things go south, _Katie…_ Do you not remember our deal?” he asked, sweetly. “Do you not remember I promised to protect you? Protect everyone? Can’t do that without Vox. Alastor has dirt on me and Velvet… I need Vox, I…. I’m running out of options, sugar.” He let go of her. She took in a gasping breath. “This is a bit more urgent than breaking news.”

Her heart pounding a mile a minute, Katie regained her composure. This wasn’t the first time she had needed to stand up for herself. She would get what she wanted one way or another. She would claw the spotlight out Valentino’s hands if she had to.

Every second was wasted time.

Wasted time _feeling emotions. Feeling scared, feeling insignificant._

“Do you want me to take care of that redemption stuff, then?” she asked, rubbing herself against the Overlord to get his attention. “I could, I don’t know, blame Alastor for keeping this a secret!”

“Alastor is most definitely the enemy but…” Valentino hesistated. “Can you really show him in a ‘bad light’? We’re in _Hell_.”

“When have I ever said I’d do something I haven’t been able to?” Killjoy said. “I can rally everyone against him! Everyone.”

“We might need leverage on him.” Valentino agreed. “Alastor has never been reasonable. He’s a nuisance… Maybe it’s time to wipe him out for good.”

“Wipe him out…?” Katie deflated at that. “You mean kill an Overlord?”

Valentino chuckled and it sent shivers down Katie’s spine. “Isn’t that news worthy?”

“I… suppose it is.”

“I love you.” Killjoy frowned. _“And I’ve been so stressed lately.”_

She closed her eyes and didn’t bother to resist.


	27. Like Cats and Dogs

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter feels a bit disjointed; I apologize.  
I’m still getting used to the new shorter size, although I must say, this is so much more manageable than before lol. I’ve missed writing this, seriously :3
> 
> Thank you to DawningFlower for teaching me the ways of baby pigs; I appreciate it greatly and hope that I can incorporate this knowledge into this fic or maybe a oneshot soon :33
> 
> Also, I’m kinda awful about replying to comments so if I haven’t replied to you yet then know that I appreciate the effort and that I will try to punch my worries in the face and reply sometime <3
> 
> (Oh, and also there is a new art at the end of chapter 8, if you guys are interested)

The static whispered a warning as the two overlords approached the small cottage, located at the edge of the cliff that lead up to the fourth circle of hell.

Although blood rain was a common occurrence in the third circle, in this area the rain had created a whole forest of bizarre looking, rotten greenery. Alastor looked at the twisted trees and at the red river that flew next to the small house.

The sight reminded him of fairy tales from his childhood, for some strange reason.

The grass under his feet was soaked and so was everything else, the windows of the cottage tinted pink from the constant rain.

“So, how do we do this?” Vox asked.

“We interview her and figure out if she’s a good fit.”

“But we already know…” Vox frowned. “You have an army of spies and ME! You already know that she’s one of the least crazy ones-“

“She’s a cannibal.”

“No, she isn’t.” Vox scoffed. “Where are you getting your intel?”

Vox lifted the soaking decorational door mat and picked up the spare key to unlock the window. A sneaky strategy; anyone who found that key would have assumed it was for the front door and would give up when they noticed it wasn’t but the window-

The front door opened, Alastor leaning against the door frame with the smuggest of expressions.

Vox sighed.

“Slid under the door frame, did you?”

“Maybe!”

* * *

“Maybe it’s here somewhere.” Mira said, digging through her stuff.

Husk looked around Mira’s office. It was a small, stuffy and cramped room with four desks and two people working there; Mira and a very overworked looking young demoness. Every now and again, she would look up from her work and smile at the two so Husk was feeling relatively safe for now.

Mira was looking through her own desk drawers as well as the other desks.

“Stephy and I aren’t allowed to keep much of anything here.” Mira mumbled. “Which is horseshit, obviously. We work here, hell, we practically live here!” She gave Husk a plastic water bottle. “Vodka.”

“Cheers.” The cat demon said, taking a gulp. “I mean, I had heard of office rules but…”

“Yeah, this is a different level of nonsense…” Mira said. “Killjoy is allergic to the sound of glass hitting my desk so I usually hide liquor in plastic bottles or flasks…”

Husk raised an eyebrow.

“I mean, she hears the sound. Through the walls. I swear, she’s so much crazier in person… Ah!” she said, holding a small flask in the air. “Found another!”

“Why do you tolerate these conditions again?”

“I mean,” she leaned on the desk she was searching through. “what’s the alternative?”

“Making a deal, joining a horde, opening your own small business or just… killing, I guess?” Husk shrugged.

“I’m not really the fighting kind either… I don’t like people and I’m not very big on selling my soul, hope you understand.”

“You and me both know that that’s not how deal’s work.” Husk chuckled. “But it might as well be. Unfair is what it is, Overlords could practically force anyone into doing anything with the power they possess…”

“True that.”

“Have you, uh, considered living at the happy hotel?”

Mira barked out a laugh. “Aw, sweetheart! That’s a cute offer.”

“I mean it. I might complain a lot about Alastor and the rude costumers but it’s not like you’d have to deal with any of that if you became a client there…”

“Why are you not a client there, then?”

Husk blinked. “You know what, yes. That’s a good fucking question. But fuck you for asking.”

“Made you think, did I?” Mira grinned a toothy smile. “Nah, I’m happy for you. Seems to me like the hotel is the lesser of the evils, although, I don’t see why you’d risk your tail for me if that’s the case.”

“Eh, fuck if I know. Maybe I just wanted to see you have fun.”

Mira smiled very sweetly at that.

* * *

It’s not cannibalism if it’s just the nail clippings!!” Vox insisted.

“For Heaven’s sake!” Alastor huffed. “If it’s of demonic origin, then it’s cannibalism, simple as that! If I scattered fingernails on a salad, I couldn’t call it Vegan!”

“She never killed _anybody_!”

“Oh, _good for her_!” Alastor scoffed, throwing his hands up in the air. “Never killed anyone and still ended up in hell! Way to play the game! Way to cheat the system!” he melted into the shadows, slithering up the great hill separating the third and fourth circle of hell with ease.

Vox could do nothing but stand his ground in resentful silence until the Radio Demon returned to his side.

“You are very slow.” Alastor said, putting his thoughts into words, oh so elegantly. “I thought you were supposed to be an all-powerful Overlord or something.”

Vox rolled his eyes and started slowly climbing the hill. Alastor looked at him with some confusion. “Since I wasn’t blessed with magical eldritch powers;” Vox reminded. “I’d say I’m plenty fast.”

“It wasn’t exactly a blessing.” The Radio Demon hummed, snapping his fingers and making a group of luminescent shadow creatures grab Vox by the collar. Thankfully for him, they just ended up carrying him along to the top of the steep cliff.

“Could have fooled ME! Considering Lucifer himself _gifted_ them to you.”

Alastor snorted at that. “Ha! Well, I suppose at some point he considered my ideology ‘noble’. He said he had ‘been there, done that’ and that he wanted to give me power and make me suffer the same fate that he did.”

Vox’s eyes narrowed in pixels, genuinely intrigued for once. “That fate being… boredom?”

“A sense of futility.” Alastor mused. “Despite all of my power; we’re in Hell! Nobody… changes. Nothing changes! There is no point in punishing the wicked, this is no place for… for… well, honestly I’m still trying to figure it all out.”

Vox hummed. “Wouldn’t just giving you no powers serve the same outcome?”

“I guess I might have held onto my beliefs for longer… it’s not something I can really know.”

“You, sure.” Vox teased. “If you knew anything about anyone, I’d know about it.”

Alastor gave the other his best ‘I could murder you if I felt like it’ smirk and subdued his ever rising urge to punch Vox in the face. There was something he really hated about how intrucive the other always felt… So much for getting Echo to cancel out his powers around Alastor, here he was, giving the Junkbox all he could ever want to know…

Stupid.

The static in his mind buzzed, an ever-present reminder of the consequences of his eldritch powers.

It spoke to Alastor.

It told him that times had changed yet people had stayed the same. It told him to forgive but to remember, to be himself but also to change. He had been told the secrets of this world alongside the message that he knew nothing.

Sometimes it was his spies, whispering the secrets of hell into the static of a radio box. Sometimes it was a sound of unknowable origin. Sometimes it sounded unearthly. Terrifying. Alastor wasn’t that sure anymore how much of it was just a figment of his imagination.

It told him how valuable of an asset Vox really was. How he could aid the hotel, how he could be used as leverage over Valentino, how it could help Angel. Yet it insisted Vox would betray him again and again and again, until the world stops turning and rain falls into the sky.

It was irritating.

He remembered the early days, when he actively listened to it. The more time passed, the less he had started to pay attention, much to the annoyance of all his spies, eagerly trying to keep him up to date.

At this point, static was to him what it was to everybody else; white noise.

He did his best to just block it out.

* * *

The two guards of Valentino’s office; Margareta and Lime, did their very best to drown out the squeaking sound of sex, coming from inside the office.

Killjoy had absolutely not entered with the intention of doing something dirty and Margareta was feeling a ball of worry form in her gut.

It was so frustrating, being so fucking helpless.

Valentino was an _Overlord._

She was just guarding his door for _decoration_, she…

She was useless.

Then, there was a giggling sound.

The two lesbians looked up just in time to see Mira and a bird looking demon running through the corridor and up towards the roof, giggling like little schoolchildren. They exchanged glances.

‘Are they going to jump or what?’ Lime signed.

Margareta smiled, in a sort of pained way. ‘One had wings. They’re going to go have fun.’

‘Protect that smile’ Lime signed.

Margareta had never felt anything but fondness for the other.

‘Yeah, let’s not tell on them’


	28. A losing Battle

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey! I'm sorry about the lack of updates. Thank you all who are still here for being patient with my and my atrocious upload schedule, I love you all <3

666 news wasn’t a very large building and since Vox’s involvement and Valentino’s increased dictatorship, it was only a matter of time until they got found out.

Still, Mira was adamant that they wouldn’t be discovered for at least the next hour or so. Or maybe she just hoped they wouldn’t, since she was beginning to enjoy the way the wind jostled her fur. Husk was stretching his wings, letting them air for once in ages, his feathers adjusting to the currency.

She knew the roof of the building better than anyone.

She would come here to contemplate life, sometimes... just watching people below go about their day. It was a surreal feeling, looking at people live their lives as if nothing was wrong. Life was going on, whether she wanted it or not. Although, today she felt like she was actually living for once.

“Feels good.” Husk admitted drawing Mira out of her thoughts. “Reminds me of good times. When I was a teen, I’d climb up to the roof of my best friend’s house.”

Mira smiled at that. “And get shitfaced?”

“If we could get away with it, yeah.” He hummed. “My parents believed I was going to be a failure from the second I was born. There was never anyone to disappoint.”

“I was never really close with anyone.” Mira admitted. “I always feel like when I get too personal, I scare people away.”

“Some don’t want to listen to other people’s problems.” Husk shrugged. “And some people are bartenders.”

Mira chuckled. It was a funny sound, her laughing. Husk adored it. “Pretty sure you’re new to the whole bartending thing.”

“Actually, no! I worked in tons of bars until they fired me.”

“And then you went into the army?”

“Not my fondest memories.” Husk said.

“Sorry.”

“Hell on Earth.”

“Can’t really imagine… My bullshit has always been more small-scale. Just a whole bunch of people being very passive aggressive at me for all of my life and nothing else. Just really unfriendly shit forever.”

“Sounds fucking miserable.” Husk agreed.

“Nah, you have it worse.”

“Nah, I had friends!”

“Well, I had nice clothes and boys hit on me!”

“Well, I had beautiful starry nights and alcohol.”

“Ah, we should have come here at sunset.” Mira realized. “It’s gorgeous.”

Husk took a swing of the cheap whiskey Mira had supplied. “Yeah maybe but it’s not like there’s anywhere else I’d rather be right now. It’s fine.”

“Yeah, right back at you. You’re cool. Wish I’d met you sooner, it’s not Hell with you around.”

“Honestly, sometimes I think Earth was worse…”

They were halfway through the whiskey when something started banging against the door that the two had barricaded.

Mira got up and stretched. “Yeah, I got to agree with you on that one. I mean, in Hell I can do this.” And just like that, she got on all fours and made the leap from the roof to the next.

“Show off.” Husk said before shaking the dusk off his wings. “Might as well.”

He took a few steps back, towards the boarded-up door, and readied himself, spreading out his wings and feeling the way the wind through his feathers. Then, he took a deep breath-

And the boarded-up door burst open, sending him swearing and stumbling forward, leaving but a moment to attempt and try and take off.

He took one step, he took a second and he realized that there was no way in hell he would make the leap with his current momentum as he took a step into nothing and felt himself falling.

His heart stopped for a millisecond and then his wings caught the wind instinctively, sending him crashing into the wall of the next building, rather than the floor.

Husk clawed himself into it, the impact of Killjoy launching herself into the wall jostling Husks soul out of his skin. He looked up into bright red eyes.

_“Hi.”_

Something caught his hand.

Mira strenuously pulled him up and got out of his way as Husk scrambled to his feet and started running, grabbing Mira to take her along for the ride.

“Jesus Christ!” Husk whined.

“Sure beats bartending for all of eternity, doesn’t it?” Mira laughed.

“NO!!”

There was a sound like gunshots behind him. Long insect legs penetrated the wall, digging holes into bricks like it was nothing.

Husk hadn’t felt suck intense terror in years.

Mira was laughing. The flashes of joy in her eyes was maybe the most unsettling thing Husk had seen in all of his life. She was enjoying taking the leaps across buildings, she was laughing.

Husk decided she had lost her mind.

Maybe he had too.

Why had he agreed to this? What had he even agreed to? What were they doing? WHERE WERE THEY EVEN GOING??

When they reached an impossible leap, he pulled Mira into a full sprint and she didn’t hesitate at all.

Their feet left the ground and Husk unfurled his wings once more. Their weight combined was so much that for a moment, he thought that he might drop Mira or his wings would break under the pressure. Then, they glid through the skies and Mira practically howled.

“Holy shit, I’m ALIVE!!”

“Not for long if Killjoy catches up!!”

“Right you are! We should probably try and lose her in the crowd!” Mira pointed out.

“Let’s do that then!” Husk said, dropping Mira when they were close enough to the ground. He paused for a second, trying to catch his breath before Mira pulled them through the crowded streets of Hell.

With this being the second circle, the ground was absolutely littered with distractions; drug dealers and hookers and street performers did everything they could to allure people’s attention towards them. The duo completely ignored all of it, dodging everybody and going through as many alleyways and corners as the they could without going in circles.

Mira was beginning to grow concerned of Husks increasingly faltering speed. Although, if she continued like this her heart might as well burst…

It all came to an end with a _wack._

“OW!” Mira howled, catching herself on the wall of the alleyway. “FUCKING FUCK JESUS FUCK, ow that really fucking hurt!!”

Husk found herself on the ground, panting and coughing for air. He was able to pull her aside just in time to barely dodge another baseball strike, which would have definitely cracked her skull but instead just smashed one of her floppy ears.

“AAAAAAAAAH-“ Husk whined at her cries, still completely disoriented himself. “WHAT THE ACTUAL FUCK DUDE! What is wrong with you?!”

She was looking up at multiple people, the biggest of which had just attempted to _kill her_. She felt Husk hurriedly pull her to her feet and managed to get a better look at the weirdos.

They were wearing matching outfits and were armed with bats and chains.

Mira groaned, glaring at the one eyed crocodile demon who appeared to be their leader.

“You’re a gang in Hell and THIS is what you do for fun? Hit old people?” Husk pulled at her arm. “I mean, you could be raiding coffee shops or liquor stores or setting 666 News on fire but instead you’re a _poor excuse_ for anarchy!” Husk had stopped pulling at her arm and Mira turned around to see more of them. They were surrounded.

“What can I say?” the croc chuckled. “If it runs, I hits.”

Husk attempted to sneak away but the sound of a strike against the wall make him freeze. Demons of all shapes and sizes flashed their toothy smiles, moving circles around the two of them. Despite their predatory behaviour, they seemed to be getting increasingly uneasy because of the not-too-distant sound of demons being impaled.

“Where are you going?” the croc asked.

“Away from your horrible grammar, obviously.” Mira said, stepping between the two. She turned and smiled at Husk before giving the gang leader her full attention. Husks heart sank.

The croc chuckled at the notion, looking over the others approvingly as they laughed as well. “If it talks back, _I hits.”_

Mira slapped the crocodile square over the nose.

The sound echoed for a moment.

“So do I.”

It was a petty, amateur move but the demons backed away. They pushed and pulled at each other and gave the three space.

The crock cracked his neck and his hands.

They were doomed.

Husk didn’t even fight back when a female demon pulled him out of the small arena the crowd had formed around Mira and the Croc.

It was over. They had drawn too much attention to themselves.

The gang began to chant and scream, drowning out the sound of powerful bolts, penetrating the asphalt floor.

_Killjoy._

“What are you called, dog woman?”

“Just call me a bitch and be done with it.” Mira huffed.

“Alright, _bitch.”_ The crocodile faked throwing a punch and Mira flinched. The crowd went wild. “I am Fang. These are _my_ boys. We are the crocodiles teeth gang!”

“So, you’re self-aware about being replaceable.” Mira muttered.

Fang went in for a punch, for real this time, and he underestimated his opponent just enough for Mira to latch onto his arm with her teeth. He was shaken off and slammed into the floor in an instant and the crowd cheered.

It was over it was all over.

Husk whimpered and cried as Mira was pushed around by her competition, the screams and noise making him feel lightheaded and sick.

They had already lost.

There was no point in fighting anymore they had _lost._

Another punch. Another bolt.

They had lost.

"We live and die for anarchy and freedom." Fang explained. "If we die, we’ll be replaced. _Our legacy lives on_."

Mira was laughing.

“Very honourable for a bunch of angsty teenagers! You know it’s not rebelling if you’re in Hell, right? This is what society _expects _of you!”

They had… lost, right?

Husk stared unblinkingly at the blood dripping down Mira’s face.

The demon holding him let go and the crowd moved and parted to let in a new contender. Killjoy was completely drenched in blood. She was dragging along a gang member who was trying to get his knife back from her back.

Mira frowned but did not falter. Neither did the croc.

They were… going to fight back? Together?

Husk stared.

_How could he have forgotten?_

Life had always been a losing battle. He was going to die eventually no matter what. So, he might as well fucking fight to protect the people he cared about.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Probably not my best work, I still have a lot to learn when it comes to chase sequences, it seems. I hope you guys enjoyed it regardless though. If you have any critique or reference to better works that I could learn from, please consider commenting down below. :3


	29. Chapter Index

A Complete(?) list of things that happen and changes that have been made

Chapter 1 events:  
Charlie gives us an intro to the way hh is run.  
Alastor is introduced into the story  
Alastor/Charlie friendship(?) is established  
Angel is introduced  
Alastor/Angel rivalry relationship is established

Chapter 1 changes:  
nameless side characters name changed to Ryan as a joke  
Angel stands up for himself a bit more now, I'm putting generally more effort into him  
All chapters are shorter now because I don't want my readers to suffer too much  
A lot of updated dialog/descriptions

* * *

Chapter 2 events:

Minor Action Scene (chase)  
Minor Comfrontation between Alastor/Angel  
It's established that Alastor knows when he goes too far  
Bowling Date is first suggested

Chapter 2 changes:  
Pov changed from Angel to Alastor during chase bc i like it better this way  
Dialog changed/updated  
ANGEL NOW KNOWS ALASTOR IS ASEXUAL FROM THE BEGINNING because when i first started writing i didn't realize Al was ace  
Less unnesesarry harasment (less, its not gone, this is angel)  
More friendly rivalry stuff because it's like waaay more fun that way!  
They realize that they are both at the hotel because Hell is getting boring/tiring (this will be important later)  
Seeds for the red eyes subplot is planted

* * *

Chapter 3 events:  
Husk is introduced  
Angel backstory is briefly discussed, hinting that a romance subplot would, like, improve his mood or something  
Alastor being asexual is established (finally)  
Husk advices Angel stay away from Alastor  
Angel being a very sexual is established  
Vaggie is introduced to the story (hooray)  
The Egg bois are introduced to the story  
REDEMPTION HAPPENS

Chapter 3 changes:  
Random snake side character is given a name and a gimmick  
Husk is much more caring and kind in this version even if he doesn't show it much (i like it more)  
the two random owl characters that added nothing have been removed  
less time spend on vaggie  
dialog has been updated

* * *

Chapter 4 events:  
Vaggie POV as she heals Charlie in the dumbest way imaginable  
I actually use the word 'yeet' as a 22 year old adult  
Vaggie's attitude is established in every scene she is in, i love her  
Wholesome(?) scene where Charlie and Vaggie are soft and happy  
Alastor is pissed (TM)  
Minor Fight Scene  
Alastor's motivation is somewhat established

Chapter 4 changes:  
stubbornly didn't change the 'yeet' even though I considered 'hurled' and 'launched' as completely adequate replacements  
Alastor's inner monologue scenes are cut out for the sake of tension  
Alastor's motivations are MUCH less convoluted and confusing  
A very much needed fight scene has been added as a response to Alastor's actions!

* * *

Chapter 5 events:  
Angel defends Charlie from Alastor  
Alastor promises not to kill Charlie before starting to tear the Hazbin Hotel down   
Everyone runs away (Vaggie carried away Charlie)  
Angel panics then defuses and talks sense into Alastor  
Their conversation is absurly chill  
Angel thinks Alastor is a dumbass psychopath which I find hilarious and idk why  
Alastor leaves to find a different way of ruining Charlie's life

Chapter 5 changes:  
Angel no longer gropes Alastor, instead hugs just hugs him (because hugs make me happy)  
Cringy dialog made better (hopefully)

* * *

Chapter 6 events:  
Calm after the storm, characters regroup  
Angel is nice to Husk because I love them both  
Angel is nice to Charlie because you guessed it  
Alastor goes to 666 News’ Headquarters  
Katie Killjoy is mentioned

Chapter 6 chnges:  
Minor updated dialog  
some scenes have changed places in order to make the story flow better 

* * *

Chapter 7 events:  
Renovations are mentioned but who cares  
Angel Dust Therapy session!  
Red Eyes plotpoint is mentioned  
Radiodust shipping intensifies  
Charlie is on board with the ship

Chapter 7 changes:  
This chapter is new  
Obligatory im not a therapist

* * *

Chapter 8 events:  
The Hazbin Hotel has been renovated  
Alastor returns and its a big deal (for a while)  
Angel realizes Alastor is tired (TM) and offers they do cocktails & chill  
It's hinted that Charlie suggested Angel give Alastor the recorder gift  
The gift gets Alastors attention big time!

Chapter 8 changes:  
Jesus, I think I almost completely re-wrote this part   
yet I didn't actually change all that much...

* * *

Chapter 9 events:  
The TV crew is introduced  
Angel Dust mentions he enjoys shooting films  
Valentino is mentioned  
Angel Dust combs through Alastors hair and its cute  
Angel gets offended at Alastors low opinion on sex workers (and most demons tbh)  
Alastor suggests a date, sorry, 'competetive round of bowling'  
Angel agrees

chapter 9 changes:  
Angel now has things he wants to do in life!!!!  
Angel has some experience in film shooting/directing but Valentino is against it  
Angel Dust is more wholesome and more sassy <3  
improved dialog (in my opinion)  
Alastor feels the need to repay Angel for being literally the best character FUCKING EVER (FUCKING HOORAY)

* * *

Chapter 10 events:  
Alastor feels sick after drinking alcohol and chills in his room  
The shit he pulled in 2 days is established  
His motivation is further established  
He realizes that his butt was way too hurt (He is still in denial over redemption tho)  
His 'daughters' are mentioned

chapter 10 changes:  
Alastor's internal monologue has been shortened and made more interesting

* * *

Chapter 11 events:  
Valentino is introduced!! :D  
Mira is introduced!!! (as a very minor character)  
Valentino's motivation is established  
Whip is mentioned  
Valentino's relationship with Killjoy is hinted at  
Valentino's relationship with Alastor is established  
Alastor blackmails Valentino into giving Angel more film projects  
Alastor's lack of allies is hinted at  
Echo is introduced  
Valentino's betrayel of Velvet is hinted at  
Angel can tell it was Alastor who made him get a film project and is ecstatic about it all

chapter 11 changes:  
this chapter didn't exist before  
Valentino has been added to give Angel more dimension and add to the conflict a bit earlier  
Alastors relationship with other overlords has been established earlier in the story (i like it)  
Alastor is nice to Angel and the relationship is now less one sided (fucking finally)

* * *

Chapter 12 events:  
B Team is introduced (camera people)  
Niffty is introduced  
Alastor confronts Charlie  
His denial makes negotiations impossible  
Charlie offers him a hand (lol)  
Niffty explains redemption  
B Team reveals to Niffty that Al and Angel are a thing  
Niffty decides to make them sweets  
B Team decides to keep following Niffty

Chapter 12 changes:  
Man, i have no idea, i didn't change niffty much but the rest is a blurr

* * *

Chapter 13 events:  
ALASTOR DONE MESSED UP!  
Major Fight Scene Ensues  
Alastor makes a sexist remark, Vaggie makes one back, author is amused  
Niffty is Niffty  
Charlie joins the battle!!!  
Niffty comes to fuck shit up!!!!

Chapter 13 changes:  
Maybe the fight scene is better? idk man  
Charlie DOES THINGS!! Big improvement  
Some Vaggie/Alastor banter. I hope they become friends, they're cute

* * *

Chapter 14 events:  
Vaggie POV  
Charlie tells Angel what happaned  
The girls leave Angel and Alastor alone  
Long and intense scene of panic and self harm  
Alastor is ok

Chapter 14 changes:  
I changed the internal panicky dialog because Alastors motiations are a bit different/more   
clear in this version. I changed this part to fit the rest of the story basically  
I think that's it....  
Obligatory I don't suffer from panic attacks, just anxiety

* * *

Chapter 15 events:  
Alastor slowly recovers  
He experiences a strange feeling of trust in Angel but brushes it off  
FAT NUGGETS IS INTRODUCED; THE CROWD GOES WILD!!  
Vaggie and Charlie talk about Al and Angel  
Alastor talks to Fat Nuggets  
Angel enters the room, hugs Alastor

Chapter 15 changes:  
Practically nothing, i love this chapter <3

* * *

Chapter 16 events  
Angel and Alastor have a heart to heart, then kiss  
Vaggie and Charlie secretly see them kiss (they happy, much shipping, very good)  
There is a truly iconic dad joke that 3 people commented about (wow!)  
B Team attack!!! and are defeated like within the paragraph  
The video footage of Niffty fucking shit up is destroyed  
Radiodust is accomplished; time for me to write them actually being together (and the gods said: it shall be wholesome and good)  
Trust is my fetish  
B Team is disposed of  
Echo is introduced

Chapter 16 changes:  
Echo wasn't in the original version of this text but I feel she will   
add to the story and to Alastor's character.

* * *

Chapter 17 events:  
Alastor/Angel bath scene  
Shinanigans ensue but they work it out in the end  
cute fanart  
Alastor invites Angel to lunch

Chapter 17 changes:  
None~

* * *

Chapter 18 events:  
Charlie and Vaggie talk and chill on the roof  
I relate to Vaggie as she talks about her insecurities  
Alastor comes and ruins the cute-romantic scene completely!! (yay!)  
Alastor apologises for his behaiviour (he isn't sorry tho)

Chapter 18 changes:  
Somebody pointed out Alastor can teleport, he doesn't need Angel to climb up, so I changed that (thank you!!!)

* * *

Chapter 19 events:  
Hell is introduced to be made up of circles (inspired by Dante's Divine Comedy)  
Alastor is famous (or infamous, rather)  
Alastor and Angel agree to make their relationship public and official, mostly for the lolz

Chapter 19 changes:  
I changed the f word with the word 'perverts' because despite me being   
also a faggot and therefor being allowed to use that word in my fanfiction, i don't really want to do that :/

* * *

Chapter 20 events:  
Killjoy is introduced!! (to be her usual homophobic self!)  
Mira is more formally introduced  
Mira visits the hotel in search of more info on the Redemption thing  
Mira and Husk bond over their mutual crippling depression and I cry inside  
It's surprisingly sweet  
Husk agrees to give her his number

Chapter 20 changes:  
None~

* * *

Chapter 21 events:  
Killjoys motivations are explored, fun  
Paralels between her and Charlie are drawn  
Charlie is overworked(TM)  
Alastor attempts to go to a therapist  
Charlie is a ray of sunshine and Alastor is a charismatic asshole and I love them <3  
Charlie talks to Alastor about her problems  
Alastor vaguely explains why he's dodging talking about his issues

Chapter 21 changes:  
Made it into two chapters because I'm making them shorter for some reason  
No, there is a reason: convenience  
And also blowing up people's emails once I post this: sorry sorry sorry :(

* * *

Chapter 22 events:  
Alastor attempts to sneak back into Angel's room, gets distracted; almost murders a man  
Husk is understandably horrified by this but Alastor brushes it off  
It is HINTED (ALARMS, FIRE, RED FLAGS!!!!) that something is off with Alastor  
Alastor cuddles with Angel and tries to relax  
Alastor's motivations are explained

Chapter 22 changes:  
The chapter was making me anxious so I edited it and changed it a bit and now it no longer trs me in that weird way...  
Uh, I changed the internal monologue a bit!  
It now says that Alastor is distracted because he is trying to be nice to people but its hard(TM)  
He's also trying to be nice because part of him knows Angel will eventually, inevitably redeemed  
Why do I make myself sad?

* * *

Chapter 23 events:  
A much appreciated location change takes us to the bar for spies!  
Vox is introduced!!  
The Vox/Alastor dynamic is established  
Alastor agrees to let Vox watch him hummiliate himself  
Vox will help him help Charlie in return  
Vox is surprised by how weird Alastor has become

Chapter 23 changes:  
None 

* * *

Chapter 24 events:  
Alastors as well as Vox's powers are explained (no, they don't make sense)  
I realize that Vox and Angel are eerily similar and feel anxious (this will be adressed later)  
(I mean, Vox's personality, not me actually adressing my anxiety)  
Alastor attempts to use a smartphone (The crowd goes wild)  
Vox reads through Alastor and Angels messages, gets punched  
Alastor insists Vox join him to interview the psychologists they found  
Vox agrees

Chapter 24 changes:  
None, somebody punch me

* * *

Chapter 25 events:  
Vox begins to see Alastors friendly facade slip  
Husk talks to Angel about Alastor  
Alastor always listens; Angel never does <3Mira exists and I pray that my readers still remember her  
Husk/Mira talk  
They bond over people trying to kill them and its cute  
Husk agrees to go to the 666 News Station

Chapter 25 changes:  
fuck idk

* * *

Chapter 26 events:  
I add EVEN MORE lesbians into the story (although these ones are just for worldbulding.)  
Killjoy tells Valentino about Redemption, they have different reactions to it  
Valentino suspects Vox is cheating on him, decides to go talk  
Killjoy decides she's gonna run a smear-campaign on Alastor

Chapter 26 changes:  
new chapter mate, idk what to tell you

* * *

* * *

  
Critique that I have taken to heart and tried to incorporate it this new version of the story:  
  


Thank you to:

HAZZARD_OVERFLOW for pointing out Alastor is canon Asexual in Chapter 1

IncenseDecedent38 for encouraging me to flesh out background/side characters more, pointed out issues with the font & more

Lillian on pointing out how difficult mental health issiues can be and how hard it can be to help people who are suffering on a random fanfiction on the internet. Everyone deserves love you guys, hang in there <3

CroftersGamer for pointing out Alastor can teleport, I had legit not considered any of his supernatural powers until they pointed it out

smthelj for being the best and also encouraging me to make Charlie more bubbly, which I needed to hear :3  
Also, the sprinkles analogy is just so good that I'm gonna put the quote right here, hope you dont mind  
"OCs are like... Uh, sprinkles or something. Can improve a story but also make it indigestible in too great a quantity."

AnxiousNoise as well as others in pointing out that our two leads are jumping into this relationship a bit too quickly and smoothly, I changed some dialogue to hopefully make the transition less jarring but this problem is something that pops up a lot in my writing and I promise to work on it more <3

DawningFlower for telling me all about pigs, which was great :33, and also encouraging me to reply to more comments <3

THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH <3 <3 <3


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